Faded Memories
by DIM666 - Insane Leader
Summary: I have to admit, finding a bunch of emeralds for a long forgotten deal is not the orthodox way of figuring out who I am. Yet the few memories I have remaining says that I never seemed to be orthodox. Shadow the Hedgehog Re-write. Chapters 12 up! Finished!
1. Questions atop Questions

Okay folks! I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaccckckkkkk! Yeah! It's been YEARS since I've written in this section, and most of my friends have moved on anyways. So maybe I'll touch upon a new fan base? Hmmm?

Nevertheless, my skills have improved since 2009-2010. I think you'll find this rendition of 'Shadow the Hedgehog' much better then my first one, if you ever read it.

So, this entire fic will take place from Shadow's POV. His POV will be hard, I've never handled such a dark POV before. However, like in my first version of this fic, I won't be following the game unless by accident. With no further adue: HERE WE GO!

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-Shadow's POV-

My eyelids opened again, and I took in the skyline of the city lying in front of me. Another hard wind blew by, and I glanced down detachedly at a newspaper that wrapped around my leg, and then left with extra exertion from the wind. Raising the gaze from my red eyes back upwards, I observed the humans scurrying about their work.

They all had purpose, drive behind their life. Despite how…uncivilized they could be at times, that is one thing I envied of them. Those things knew who and what they were, and what they were going to go after.

I couldn't say I did. "Who am I?" I asked aloud to the wind as it blew into my face again, carrying the words off and away.

"Shadow the Hedgehog." Was my reply. Every since I had…'awoken' that was what everyone had always called me. Omega, Rouge, Faker, and the others. That was at least a season ago. Summer had taken full hold now. "That name haunts me. And yet, it's the only thing about me I can remember."

That was a lie. I grimaced. "That, and THAT horrid image!"

-Flashback-

_Running. Gripping her hand tighter, I had to make sure she stayed with me. The consequences if I let go were unpleasant._

_The door ahead was open, and I rushed through it. "Shadow! Wait!" She cried, and I turned to face the girl. I probably came up to her sternum, and she wore a blue dress that matched her eyes and her blonde hair. She turned to shut the door, punching in the code to close it._

_Yet when I turned to make sure it closed, the sight of 5 soldiers greeted me. One of them held a pistol, and with one finger muscle flex, the trigger was pulled. The shot rang out, and Maria…that was her name, Maria, turned to look at me in shock. The bullet went right in between two of her middle ribs, and the impact knocked her off of her feet and landing on the floor, blood beginning to stain her dress._

_The wound would definitely be fatal._

-End Flashback-

"Who am I? And why can't I remember anything? And who is this Maria?" Without speaking, I asked a fourth question. 'And why am I talking and answering myself?' With that, I crossed my arms, sighing in exasperation with a hint of anger.

Thinking back, considering the possibilities. Rouge seemed to have the idea that I was a robot. Omega was quote 'unable to conclude due to insufficient data'. Sonic had said something about me being alive, as if I had existed before. All the others refused to answer on what their opinions were/are.

But if Sonic's theory was the case, shouldn't I have a memory of it? Or had I been brain-washed. Maybe I had committed some crime that was so horrid that I had to forget it.

But nothing I could of done would have been any more horrid then what that man did to that blonde-headed girl in that single memory.

So maybe, just maybe I was an android. A robot gone rogue. Again, I had no purpose, as no one, not even that fat doctor, had tried to make any type of attempt to bring me back under control. "Ggggrrrr." This didn't make any sense.

I looked again at the skyline as a thick series of dark red clouds floated over it. Funny. I could only remember the last three months of my life, granted, but I'd never seen clouds that looked THAT menacing before.

And these weren't regular Thunderstorm clouds either. These were much thicker and darker. Not to mention, the smell that the wind carried with it was slightly alien and smelt of death.

A single strange vortex formed overtop the city skyline, but unlike Tornados I had heard about, this one just rained what appeared to be life forms down into the city. No doubt about it now, this was un-natural.

With slightly piqued curiosity, I watched the scene, but the only other changes I was able to note was a bunch of fire and smoke pillars rise up while screams rang out from the city's heart. Human screams. The same creatures that brutally killed Maria in cold blood.

"Hmm. Look how pathetic they are!" My remark was plainly directed at the humans and their incompetence to deal with this invasion. "I don't have time for this."

Spinning on my heels, I clicked my shoes together, and they lit up, ready to launch me away.

'_Shadow'_

The instant before I removed myself from the scene, I turned around, looking for whatever called for me. If my mind wasn't making things up, that is.

A small light about three feet from me suddenly took shape. The creature was tall, maybe 7 or 8 feet. It had three ghastly eyes, and it's head looked like that of a pick-axe head. It wore black and red robes that adorned it's body richly, and it's arms hung out of the gaping holes, ending in two chubby fingers and a thumb. Most noticeably, it floated in the air.

"As you can see Shadow, the day of reckoning will soon be here." It raised it's arms, and plainly I could tell that IT smelt bad. Pointing it's right arm at me, it's uppermost eye narrowed. "Find the SEVEN Chaos emeralds and Bring them to me as promised!" It scratched at the neck of it's robe.

"Huh?" This was a little much a little sudden. "Who are you? And how do you know I'm Shadow?" Throwing my arms up to emphasize my confusion, I accusingly asked the last question. "And what the hell are you talking about?"

Yet all I got in response was it fading away. Now the questions I had earlier were piled on top of with more questions. Following that was…artillery fire?

Explosion shook the ground around me, and I leapt to the side as the very piece of land I had been standing on exploded from a low-yield bomb of some sort.

"If he claims that we had a deal, then he must know something about who, or what, I am. Like it or not, I'll HAVE to get those seven emeralds!" The correct number should have been six. I always carried a green one with me. It just was more convenient, as time and time again it proved to have increased my abilities. "The ONLY way I'm going to get secrets to my past it going to be through those Chaos Emeralds!" My fists clenched. I now had purpose. And like I had back in the spring, I would carry this out with speed and perfection. Kicking my shoes on again, I raced into the city, with no clue of what exactly I'm getting myself into. Surely, without a doubt, any type of Emerald could be found inside a Jewelry store, right?

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Hmmm. Yeah. I hope you like this. It's a HUGE improvement over last time. Well, please review, and wait for the next chapter to come out.


	2. Annihilation of Westopolis

Alrightee folks! Next chapter! Another major difference from the first time I wrote this is that in this one I'll be following the game as closely as possible. Thank the lord for Youtube Walk-through. However, stages will be different, as I don't want to copy. I want some originality with this story, so some levels will be much, much different. With that said, now the story really does begin! I hope you'll enjoy, because HERE WE GO!

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-West Metropolis-

With a leap off of the edge of the ramp, my body became airborne, as high as some of the shorter buildings in the vicinity. The smell of smoke and alien activity was thick in the air, and with all of the fighting and gun fighting going on that I could hear, I'd be unnoticed, surely. Perfect for me to get the emeralds.

"So. Promised time?" I scoffed. "Then lets go fulfill a promise." Gliding downward between buildings and into a manmade hole in the ground, now that I had traversed far enough downwards, I readied myself in a landing position. Upright, body slightly hunched forward with knees slightly bent. At the split-second before impact I lit my skates up again, and took off.

It must have been some kind of subway tunnel I landed in, as I noticed beside me what appeared to be rails. One trio of rails held a now abandoned subway train. The only way to go on now was on the rails, so jumping into the train tunnels I landed sideways, the thrust from my shoes pushing me onward. I had a lot of experiencing gliding like this with Rouge and Omega, and had experimented with it on and off since then. It was just as pleasant as the world rushing by through running, but with this the challenge was to stay on the rails and not end up falling off a ledge and killing yourself.

"Grrrr." With a last-second leap I jumped off the set of rails I was grinding on and landed on the right rail on the middle set. The set I had been on suddenly terminated with several construction signs and torn gravel. A flash of electricity shooting down the middle rail caught my interest, but as a warning rather then an idea. The only sound that overwhelmed my skate-shoes were the smashing and explosions taking place above me in the city.

And that strange rumble coming from farther down this tunnel. Rounding a turn, I was blinded with yellow light. The subway train's whistle blared loudly, and taking this as my warning, I crouched, and leapt onto the top of the subway train. The sound of metal shearing as I did caught my attention briefly as the front of the train toe apart from the 700 mph winds that had been generated behind me. I had no time for distractions, although that shredding sound was irritating.

After running all the way across the subway, I landed back on the right rail. Yet no sooner had I done that then to my right side again a station appeared. Curling into a ball, a final shove off the rails sent me into the waiting location. Several dozen people were there in the terminal, some cowering in fear while others holding crying children. The scene passed almost instantly away as I surfaced again, now on concrete roads.

Fires lined the sides as burning wrecks of cars caught released toxic smoke into the sky. Taking back to running, I went downward even farther. Looking for a jewelry store. Surely, just surely, there would be some kind of such a thing here. But that was only a lead. I had nothing definite that said it would be there. So what would my next guess be if they weren't there?

Shadow, your asking yourself to many questions.

"Hey Shadow! Long time no see!" That voice was easy to recognize. Sonic the Hedgehog. My cheap 'rip off'. He suddenly pulled up next to me, and I ignored him. "You know, these black alien things really seem to mean some business! How about we show them a thing or to!"

Continuing to ignore him, I smashed an abandoned dumpster on the road side and using it as a ramp to jump over a creature that looked to have been painted red and taking steroids. Running onwards, I smashed into a Police escort truck. It exploded on impact, and on I went. With a quick glance behind me, or more accurately to my side, I saw Sonic still there, smiling. At a time like this?

I came up to a series of police officers. Apparently thinking me as an alien, bullets began tearing from their guns as they tried to hit me. I knew from past experience it would take more bullets then what they had to hurt me, but that didn't me I wanted to get hit. Jumping upwards, landing on a light pole, and then scaling briefly up the side of a burning building I cleared them.

With a loud thud my feet firmly planted back onto the ground, and rather then go back to skating I sped-walked. Even this would have been considered running for others walking. Sonic raced up beside me, pointing in shock at the alien that was at that very moment stepping out of a…jewelry store?

And in one of it's three hands it held a bright blue, shining emerald. Yep. THAT was definitely a Chaos emerald. With a flash of speed that I don't think anyone noticed, I picked up a pistol that was laying on the side of the road. Blood-wet, it briefly slipped in my hand, but coming to another halt I shot several times at the alien. It threw it's arms backwards, dropping the emerald, and falling to the ground as I hit it at nearly point-zero.

"That's A Chaos Emerald!" Faker shouted, and I grabbed the discarded gem, stuffing it in my quills. "It could unlock unlimited power!" Yes. Yes I did remember that. Not long after Rouge had…'awakened' me we found one such emerald. No need to be reminded.

Smashing through one of the buildings in a spinning ball, I landed on the other side. I smirked lightly. That lost the annoying blue rat.

"Shadow, you are late."

Turning around, what looked to be a floating octopus with a single eye in it's center hovered in front of me. "From now on, my eye will observe your every move and follow you."

That was the…alien thing's voice. It never told me it's name, come to think of it. But no mistake, it was the same thing that charged me with the task of gaining the emeralds. Just to lose it, I acted as if I was heading straight, and at the last moment I ducked into an adjacent alleyway. But it's dark laughter informed me that I hadn't lost it.

So really, I had only lost one blue annoying 'company' for a more annoying black one. Brilliant. "Now Shadow, finish off these soldiers that dare to defy me!"

He didn't need to tell me. With another leap, the smoke-filled wind whipped my face as I leapt onto one solider, his neck and shoulder blade breaking on impact. Leaping off of him, I ran right into a second solider as he prepared to shoot me. With a kick, he skidded on his back across the ground. Miraculously, the man was still alive. Walking up to him, I pulled out the gun I still had, and shot the last rounds into his head, his blood covering the road beneath him.

Taking his gun and switching the magazines, I was off again. This one had a bit more bullets in it. Perfect. Resisting the urge to shoot the alien eye, I aimed it at a truck that was unloading such servicemen, and riddled it's front with bullets. As I ran by it exploded, and the wind that accompanied me pushed it over onto it's side.

And then the ground shook and split beneath me simultaneously with a laser that smacked into the road beside me. Leaping into the air and cart wheeling, I shot at another solider as he shook from the shockwave.

"Shadow, Steer clear of the shockwaves from the laser blasts." As if I hadn't just figured that out. Running on down the roads and clearing a hole gashed form an earlier laser impact, I began leaping over various parked cars on the side, my shoes scorching the rooftops of them. Totally clearing a ditch, and again hoping to have lost the following eye.

I didn't. It floated in my slipstream. With a sudden burst of speed, I ran forward, bowling into a solider ahead of me, the impact splitting his body in half at the waist. Speeding up a bit more, I spied a truck coming up farther up. Another military transport truck. Instead of shooting it, with a grinding of my teeth I ran into it's front head-on, no holding back. The front of the truck caved in and exploded behind me, and the resulting explosion launched me back into the air, clearing several buildings before I landed on the side of one, gripping it and looking for any more human resistance.

Finding some a bit farther off, I jumped off the building, flying over them and showering them with bullets. It caused enough chaos amongst them that I was able to clear then undetected. Landing on the side of another such human structure, I raced down it and sped back up to at least 700 mph once I hit the ground.

Another laser blast caved the ground in right ahead of me, and with a jump I cleared it and the shockwave. "Destroy all of these fools! Show them how powerless they are!" Tuning the voice out of my head, I landed in front of such a 'fool' and punched him in the gut simultaneously with both fists. His bullet-proof vest snapped as did his backbone, and tearing my fists out of the corpse I sped off again. Jumping off of burning piles of rubble and the like to avoid the road as it was shaken by laser blasts, I couldn't help but admit one thing.

I was effective at killing.

Reaching around and pulling out the Chaos Emerald that I had recently acquired, I felt it's power course through my bloodstream. It was addicting. With a bit of curiosity, I recalled what we did back several years ago. Shoot spears and freeze time with this thing. "CHAOS BLAST!" I called out with a shout, and my body glowed red, then released a powerful shockwave that toppled the skyscrapers around me, killed virtually everything in my vicinity…and knocked that stupid eye thing away from me!

I slowed down to a near stop, noticing the overturned buss in front of me. The sounds of soldiers readying their guns for an attack was clear. Coming to a full stop, I gripped the sides of the bus and flipped it into the air. With perfect landing, it landed on all of them except for one, who had his lower half crushed. With the sound of skull shattering I finished crushing his upper half. And with that, I continued on my way.

After several more minutes of human-killing and speed-skating, I heard that familiar voice. "Keep it up Shadow! This is the same fate that will befall the rest of this stupid race!"

A growl emanated from my throat. I thought I had lost him! Powering up another Chaos blast, but not using it quite yet, onward I went, hoping to outrun him. I ran through trucks, soldiers, cars, and piles of rubble while trying to get away from it. It was plain it could go just as fast as me. Rounding the corner at such incredible speeds the force of the wind generated drove the watching alien down the original road.

Speeding up again, my feet carried me back out into the open, right into a man-made road barricade with soldiers and explosives galore. Shooting through them I shouted again 'CHAOS BLAST!' The ensuing blast and the speed-driven wind utterly annihilated the troops. Leaping through the air again, I jumped on two more soldier's heads and crushed their skulls that fast.

Suddenly the wind was pushing against me again, and I realized I was flying through the air. Apparently, I jumped off a ramp and didn't realize it. Shooting two more soldiers with the gun that I held, and henceforth emptying that magazine, the realization of what I did hit me.

I had just went through the entire city, and I was standing at the end of an abandoned bridge, looking outward toward the city's outskirts. Took longer then it should have. Then again, I had gained the Chaos Emerald and killed off the soldiers. Holding the emerald in my hand, I grinned again. That was thrilling.

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I know, the chapter seemed short. But the last thing I want to do is to drive myself crazy writing over-sized chapters. I hope you enjoyed, REVIEW!


	3. Cyberspace Highways

First up, a big thanks to ShadowMiku and Lucy Labrador for reviewing. All of those reviews inspire me, and makes me want to continue writing.

Anyways, this chapter is a bit more challenging to write, but I can do it. I think. So…HERE WE GO!

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-Westopolis-Outside of the United Federations Military Command Headquarters-

"Attention. Emergency Broadcast to all Mobile Units. Headquarters to all mobile units. This is an all points bulletin. Be on the lookout for a 'Shadow the Hedgehog'. Wanted in connection to the recent string of terrorist attacks. Last seen in the vicinity of Downtown Westopolis."

My ear twitched and a smirk tugged at the corner of my mouth. The two soldiers that were standing in front of me, holding a pair of Military grad rifles were trembling in fear. For good reason. Surely they had heard by now what I had done to the soldiers defending this city.

"Orders are to capture him Dead or Alive."

That was just rich. Keeping a stoic expression on my face while kicking my shoes together, I pointed down a side-alley. "Out of my way. Coming through!" My voice rang out, charging at them at a comparatively slow rate compared to earlier.

They retreated several steps, one kneeling while both cocked and readied their guns. "D-d-d-on't move! Or we'll shoot!"

They were to afraid to pull the trigger, that was obvious. "Stupid Humans." With a leap, I leapt onto one of their heads, the sound of his neck snapping. Before his kneeling comrade could pull his trigger finger back I leapt and planted my feet firmly into his chest. His bulletproof vest snapped as did his ribs, and when he landed I pulled my shoes off of his chest, his blood coating my shoes. With a pair of shakes, the blood was shaken off, and I turned around as the sound of Black Doom's voice rant through the air.

"Well Done Shadow."

I stared him down fiercely. "Answer me this. Who are you?"

It seemed to laugh, a dark, musty laugh. "You don't remember anything now, do you Shadow?" My lips stayed shut. It would be pointless to give it information against me if the thing wasn't to be trusted.

Ignoring my silence, it continued nonetheless. "But you will in time Shadow. In time. But for now, you have no time to waste here. You need to access the Untied Federation's mainframe. Understand?"

Mainframe. Computer. "Understood." Now it was clear why the thing's floaty eye thing had told me to come here to wait for the next set of instructions. Clenching my fists, I watched the holographic image disappear in front of my eyes. Spinning around on my heels, I observed the United Federation's main building in front of me. However, it was obvious that the mainframe wouldn't be located here. Walking around it, I looked for anything that might look like some type of Computer. Surely a single mainframe for such a large nation would need a large computer?

Yet the nearest I could find was an abandoned looking tool shed. "Grrr." With a kick, I knocked the boards of the door inward. This was the tech age, everything was being made smaller and-

There was the mainframe, surely. It looked like a small section of a gigantic Computer Hardware underneath the small tool shed, underground and behind the Headquarters of the Military command unit. Grabbing onto the pole that stuck upwards from the tool shed, I slid down and was greeted with more Techno-Colors that I had cared to see.

Almost as soon as my feet hit the ground, the sensation of the pole being ripped away from me followed. The wind pressed against my face while I gritted my teeth.

"What the Hell is this! I'm not able to control my body!" Looking down, I noticed the bright blue line that I was standing on, my feet firmly planted onto it. Raising my feet, or attempting to do so at least, I realized I was definitely stuck on this thing.

So with that option out, I leaned over, trying to at least change direction. As I did the blue line I was planted on moved with me, so I still stayed stuck to it, but I going a slightly different direction. "I see. I can control which way this thing leads." The line that was pulling me along was going nearly as fast as my normal speed, and that in itself was shocking.

Suddenly, the line terminated. My shoes activated in the same split second, and I leapt over a now-rising blue hurdle. Landing atop of it, now I had a better view.

The view of the location shocked me. There was millions of such bars that I had been on earlier, going in and out of these giant brick things. Along with it, various red blocks were rising and falling, these arriving and leaving faster then the blue ones.

"Shadow, this is the information highway known as 'cyberspace'." Looking over my shoulder with a half-glance, Black Doom's eye floated there. Almost as if it was taunting me and making me nervous. "Just destroy the core program, and this world will plunge into Chaos!"

I was already running off, hoping to lose it here also. But when it said 'Chaos', I reached behind me, grabbing the emerald out of my quills, the one that I had recently received.

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_-Begin Flashbacks-_

"_Chaos…CONTROL!" With that, I froze time and ran as fast as I possibly could toward to the center of the Prison Island base, going the opposite distance as the blue faker. My watch had frozen at 8 seconds, but the Chaos Control would last as long as I'd need it to._

_Following the trail of minor destruction that Rouge had left behind, arcing the corners as the light begin to change colors. It was just about to wear off, but I still had time. That was, until I came to a pair of large, metal doors. Chaos Control was running out faster then I had anticipated. With a sidekick, the doors bent inward, creaking as I could look into the other room through a small hole formed between them._

_She was sitting against the adjacent wall, holding three Chaos Emeralds beside her. I needed to fulfill my promise to Maria! With another powerful kick, the doors parted enough for me to get in, and with a curl into a ball, I flung my body into the room._

_Just as Chaos Control wore out._

"_At least I'll get to go out with these marvelous gems surrounding me." She remarked, and her gaze raised to my eyes. I grabbed her hand with my left, and the emeralds she wasn't holding in my right. With a quick glance at her wrist, I noticed the clock said 5, 4, 3..._

"_CHAOS CONTROL!"_

_And time froze again, except for the four chaos emeralds between us, her, and I. With another fierce tug, I pulled her behind me and tore back out the same way I had already went. With so many emeralds, this Chaos Control would last longer, but time was still flowing, ultra-slow. Her hand gripped mine even tighter, fearing of being let go and consumed by the soon arriving flames._

_And with a Sonic Boom at the exact moment I tore out of the main entrance, the structure of it fell apart behind our wake. I couldn't imagine how badly it might of hurt her ears, being as they would of been extremely sensitive due to her species. Simultaneously with the Sonic Boom, a deep, prolonged rumbling from inside the prison sounded, and it was obvious to both of us that this was the explosion we had been fearing. I'd have to time it just right, otherwise I'd lose her and the Emeralds._

_Maria's face snagged my mind for that exact instant. Tearing through the forest to the opposite side of the island, a red gaze was cast all across the island, and our heads turned simultaneously, the towering stalk of flame climbed miles into the air in a fast instant. "Chaos Control NOW!" That third one was the one I needed, as it didn't freeze time, but rather, teleported us to the location we needed._

_ARK._

_At that very moment we arrived. I dropped Rouge roughly, and her hands touched the ground as she kissed it. "Oh thank heavens! Oh, my lovely gems!" She reached forward for the two emeralds she had held in her hands, but I swiped them from her._

"_Remember the deal." I harshly spoke, and walked off toward the main computer, where the emeralds could be used to charge the emeralds. I could here her seethe in disapproval, but I ignored her. This was much more important._

"_SHADOW!"_

_-_End Flashback-

Abruptly, I was skating right into a rising red block. With a turn of my body the data flow switched direction, and by inches the quills on my back missed the obstacle.

Black Doom's eye, who had snapped me out of my memories, plowed face-first into the wall. Another smirk crept across my face, and with another turn of my body, I looked for anything else that might resemble a main program.

Again, the data stream terminated, and with a jump I cleared a gulf and landed on top of another 'program', but still not the main one. The distance between the next to was too large, even for something going 700 mph.

Thankfully, just as I jumped to clear the gulf, two sets of green energy formed beneath my feet, and using them as springboards, I jumped them both. Whatever those were, they might of just saved my mission.

With a loud 'Crack' my shoes landed on the pavement, several robotic machines standing in my way. With a recollection of my adventures earlier in the year with Rouge and Omega, I would of guessed they were those flying Eggman robots, but their color was a uniform black with the United Federations flag on it, Blue and white stripes with 57 red stars.

With a rush, my body careened into each of them, and they shattered at impact. The last one tried to turn away, but I still ran into it back-first.

"Well Done Shadow."

Aghh. He came back faster then I expected. That creepy, raspy voice inspired me even more to depart from him, and with another burst of speed I plowed into two armed soldiers that had been standing by idly, not really caring about their job. Before they could awaken, I burnt one's head to a crisp as I jumped over him, and the other one had his spine instantly snapped. Grabbing his rifle, and deciding to use it for more constructive purposes then a lean to, rifle fire tore from the barrel and destroyed another septuplet of flying machines.

"This security was pla-"

Didn't care to hear about it. Rounding a corner suddenly, and avoiding another rising red block, he went into it again. The voice that caught my ear now was a bit unexpected by all means.

"Oh! Shadow! Pleasure to see you here!"

I grunted, acknowledging my former teammate and running onward, but she must have been following me. "I've been sent on assignment to retrieve the Chaos Emerald in this area."

"What do you think I'm here for?" I spat back at her, lying through my teeth.

"Then maybe we could look for it together?"

"Keep up." I growled, and grabbing onto a pulsating yellow pole, I climbed up it and reached the top within seconds. Her shadow followed not long afterwards, as she had taken flight to keep up. Speeding back off, several more flying machines followed after me, trying to shoot me down, and I complied with shooting them down.

"Nice." She remarked as I continued running off, not trying to lose her. Her company was much better then Black Doom's, and surely he wouldn't show up with another Mobian here?

Another leap, and I cleared the gulf between myself and the regular line-streaked ground. Intentionally avoiding the lines, I ran between a pair of them, and now she kept up by riding the lines. Clever. Seeing it before her, I leapt onto a walking machine and smashed it, then using it as a springboard to cover a larger distance until I landed on a tall greenish-yellow pole. It was steadily transmitting data upwards, and with it, me. Tucking the rifle under my arm, I checked the magazine for bullets.

46 more of them. It was a fully automatic, so with a slight turn of a dial, I set it on that setting.

As soon as I jumped off of it and onto a higher level, another red block rose up, trying to block my path. "That's a firewall to block intruders and viruses! Wa-"

Before she could finish her warning I spin dashed myself into the block's center, and it shattered on me.

"-tch out." Her voice trailed off as she continued flying after me. Grabbing my ears in pain, a series of red sirens went off. Must have been because I busted a firewall. Series of guns poked out of the roof and sides of the wide tunnel I was now in, firing at me and her.

With no other choice, and ignoring my ears that were aching from the sirens, I leapt onto another data stream, and it sent me off faster then the others. This must have been the main stream considering it's speed, and the main program should have been up ahead.

Yet it was hard to keep everything straight. It went up walls, through tunnels, backwards, forwards, and despite being the Ultimate Lifeform as Eggman had once called me, I was getting disoriented.

With a sudden tug, it whipped me around another corner, and I quite nearly bashed my head into a rising firewall. "I'm sick of these idiots that oppose me! Chaos BLAST!"

With a surge of fire and energy emanating from my body, multiple firewalls were torn down, multiple flying 'beetles' were annihilated, and I was able to carry on my way with no interruptions.

"What was that!"

"A trick I learned in the orient." My half-sarcastic remark came, and up ahead was, most definitely, the core program. It looked like a large cube, like many other programs, but on the top was a ring made of wires that was constantly shifting shape with a Chaos Emerald in the center of it.

"There it is!" She called, flying at it, but with an extra burst I flew up to it, trying to get the emerald so I could destroy this machine. Suddenly, it lashed out with a punch of it's wires at me, and I went flying backwards.

"Let me try!" Rouge called, and she also attempted to get the gem. It 'punched' her also, and she landed beside me.

"That's the main program alright." She remarked, rubbing her sore wing. "That hing was meant for self defense. Looks like we'll have to destroy it to get that emerald."

"Perfect." I replied, my voice edging a growl. With another leap forward, my foot lashed out for a roundhouse kick. One of the 'wire' sets wrapped around my foot, but it didn't slow down any, and my foot made contact with the emerald.

The emerald detached from the wires, and was thrown across the location. Finishing spinning my body, the wires became inert, the lights in the location went out, and I landed, the wires wrapping around my leg until they released the rest of their motion.

A small purple glow could be seen over with Rouge, and she pulled out a small white flashlight from her heart-shaped chest plate. Turning the back end of it, the light's radius expanded, and she pointed it at me. My eyes narrowed as they tried to adjust to the light-dark-light transition.

"Got it." She held up in her other hand the emerald, it casting a faint yellow glow. I walked up and swiped it out of her hand gruffly, throwing it into my quills.

"Touché are we now?"

"I've got a job to do with these emeralds."

"Like stopping this invasion?"

"The invasion has a lot to do with it." I growled, walking to a hint of light shining through the ceiling. That would probably be the only escape route.

"Or might it have something to do with your past?" I stopped dead in my tracks, turning around slowly to face her. "I thought so. You've seen or heard something during this invasion, and now you want the emeralds because you think it will help you."

A low growl emanated from my throat, and I spun on my heels, walking back to the spot under the 'trap door'.

"Shadow…?" She asked.

"Stay out of my way." I coldly remarked to her, and with a leap I powered through the door, the smoky sky outside of Westopolis greeting me as I left the now defunct cyberspace behind me.

* * *

Welll, this was a hard chapter to write. Very hard. In fact, possibly the hardest. Yet it was still the longest. Just wait for the next one, and until then, REVIEW!


	4. Cryptic Castle

When I first wrote this, I wrote it in a Semi-Dark direction. However, when I started writing it again, I was aiming for a Semi-Dark/Pure Semi-Dark Direction. Now I'm having second guesses, and these will help me, and Shadow, decide where this ends up. I might end up having Shads join Black Doom as in the Pure Dark ending, or maybe he'll be the Pure Hero, or something in between. Either way, HERE WE GO!

* * *

My gaze was directed at the Chaos Emeralds in my hands. I had lost doom's eye, but from here on out the problem would be to find the other emeralds. As much as it pained me to say it, I'd need to get that alien back.

"Three Chaos emeralds. Rumor is, that 7 of them together makes a miracle." My hands clenched them a bit tighter and a smoke-filled breeze filled the air around me briefly. "These emeralds hold my memories. Without them, I'll have to rely on that alien to relay to me my past, since no one else will tell me."

The thought isn't very attractive. He might as well just make me his personal guard. He would have no problem with that because he'd only give me hints of information.

"I need these Chaos Emeralds. I need them to find my past, and see just what truly happened to me."

Looking into the most recently acquired emerald, a different vision began overtaking my mind.

_-Flashback-Shadow' POV-_

"_Well Shadow, you seem to be performing at prime health." The man said. He was wearing a white lab coat, and was very round in shape, his arms, legs, and head looking like they had been glued on. "I think you're ready for your next test."_

"_Another Test Dr?"_

The man did look somewhat similar to the Doctor Eggman I had encountered several months earlier, but it couldn't be the same. This man's voice was lighter and he looked much older.

"_Yes. Come with me to the observatory and I'll show you your next test."_

_As he walked out of the examination table and down the hall, I looked down both corridors. I couldn't see anyone coming from behind or ahead, so it wasn't as likely the doctor would get distracted by petty talk._

"_Oh Shadow!" a female voice greeted me, wrapping her arms around me from the back and pulling me into an embrace. "How did it go brother?"_

"_Maria." Gerald Robotnik turned around to face Maria. "He is NOT your brother."_

"_He's like a brother to me." She remarked, removing her arms and standing next to me. I turned my head toward her. She was 14 years old, and yet towered over me as I only came to the bottom of her chest. "Shadow! I figured out how to turn in these skates finally!" She kicked her feet together and the prototype skates she wore, very similar to my own, sprung to life, raising her a quarter of an inch of the ground and pushing her forward._

_Just about the time that she would of vanished around a bend in the corridor, she leaned her body to the right, and her direction changed with it. Not having lost any speed, she whizzed back up to us, and with another kick of her heels together, the shoes powered down and she slid briefly across the halls of ARK._

"_I just can't get it done right when I'm trying to go any faster. Would you mind showing me Shadow?"_

"_Maria, I think your pro-"_

"_Shadow." Robotnik's voice cut me off. "We need to get the test done with."_

_I sighed in dissapointment, looking at the blonde haired girl. "Maybe later Maria."_

"_Okay then. Bye Shadow!" She bent down and hugged me again, and then sped off._

"_Why did you give her those shoes anyway doctor?" I asked, facing his backside as he walked on._

"_Entertainment. It would also of been a waste to destroy the prototypes. Besides, she also said she wanted to go as fast as you." He chuckled. We both knew that the prototype shoes weren't THAT fast._

-End Flashback-

My fist loosened around the gem a bit. Maria…Gerald. They seemed like…good friends? She had been so innocent sounding though. Like she had no cares.

With that I bared my fangs. They killed her. It was one thing that they killed a girl. It was another thing when they killed an innocent young girl, one that might not of fully understood the world's horrors. Opening my eyes again, I noticed a bright white light surrounding me. Before I could say anything, the surroundings changed.

Now I was standing on a small glowing stand. Above me seemed to be a teleportation contraption, and I couldn't think of anything else that could of got me here so fast. My eyes scanned the room once more, and it appeared to be a lab that I was in.

"Where am I…?" My question bounced off the walls, nothing here to answer but the buzzing and clicking of the machines around me. Turning around and looking through the glass ceiling, I noticed what appeared to be… "Isn't that Doctor Eggman?"

My experiences with him were not that pleasant. He created a robot that tried to copy my abilities, and those of my rivals. He himself seemed to be completely and totally an utter fool with a bunch of machines. As of now he was hovering in one of those machines just outside of the glass ceiling of the building I had teleported to. One thing I did remember was that, regretfully, he also knew of my past. "Maybe He could tell me about those black creatures."

Leaping off of the portal, I ran down and skated toward the a doorway that would probably be a way out. This might be my best chance to figure out who I am.

I had expected a nearly endless maze of assorted hallways to get out, but I was pleasantly disappointed. Rather, I was greeted with the outdoors soon. Finding some random rails, looking as if they would have been used for construction, I leapt onto them, grinding on them for a bit. Upwards, downwards. Up ahead the rails seemed to have melted into a loop form, and balancing while speeding up, my body easily glided over them.

-_Flashback POV-_

_Leaping off of the rail, I firmly planted my foot onto the wing of the F-15 Jet. The wing crushed under my force, and I leapt off of it, back onto the curved rails as the man-made weapon crashed into the highway below me. A pair of missiles whizzed by me, one on each side. Grabbing the back of one of them, I spun around and threw it at the opposing Apache chopper that had launched it. The missile crashed through the front window, and exploded as I leapt off the rail and back onto the crazy highway. "Really, who makes roads like this?"_

_-End Flashback_

Blinking my eyes, I leapt off the rail and onto a small platform. That was unexpected. Kicking my shoes together, I launched ahead. Farther up Eggman's egg-carrier could be seen from the bottom, but he was some ways away. It would take some time to catch up to him.

However, it wasn't that difficult to keep even at least. Almost as if I had been expected, there were all sorts of strange launch pads, that when stepped on, shot me farther along, complimenting my speed. Another set of rails could be seen ahead of me, and leaping onto the right one, I leaned with it as it arched and banked leftwards.

And without warning, dropped on me. The green acid-covered ground quickly rushing up to catch me, I kicked my shoes together and hopes to create enough of an air pocket between that and the ground to stay alive. No luck. With the speed of a bullet I fell into the green liquid substance with a plop. My eyes closed shut, hoping to be able to ignore the substance that would try to destroy me. Readying a Chaos Blast, and the Chaos emeralds within my quills shining with the energy, I opened my eyes. So much for Acid, it wasn't burning me, but I had worse buoyancy here then in water

Bubbles arched out of my mouth rather then words, but my command and desire still went off, and the Chaos Blast incinerated the green liquid. The force of it also launched me out of the burning substance found me flying back through the air and I grabbed a nearby pillar. The heat of my Chaos Flames licked at my fur, yet I had to ignore it. Using my fingertips to find small wedges in the wall, I heaved myself upwards as fast as I could.

However, after coming back to the top of the pillar, I was greeted with three options. A rail to my left, a rail to my right, and a path ahead of me. With no other real choice, I decided to go forward, running on through down the path.

"Shadow! It's great to see you here!"

"Doctor!" I cried out in shock. There was no way! I would of seen him landing!

"These Black Creatures are trashing my Eggman land theme park I'm building! If you can just re-lite my torches, the defense system should chase them off.

"Forget it." I said to the TV screen. Obviously, THIS was his method of communication. "Why did you bring me here?"

In response, the TV screen went fuzzy, then repeated the same short message. In a fit of rage, I shot a Chaos Spear at it, impaling the screen and blowing the machine up. "Danm it. I've got to find the Doctor somehow."

Kicking my rocket-hover shoes again, I pushed onwards. As I blew forward, crashing through a door as I did, two hulking, thin, black aliens stood in my way.

"I come from Black Doom." I said, hoping to shrug them off. They didn't listen. Rather, they just rushed at me like rabid animals. Bad idea. With a hard kick my feet went right through the skull of one of them, and a half-cocked roundhouse punch severed the other's head from it's neck. Either I was a lot more powerful then I thought, or these aliens were weak.

"Shadow! Good to see you again!"

The voice was very familiar. I had met her back in my 'adventure' Last Spring, but it seemed familiar in more ways then one.

"Cream went into this weird-looking Castle, and hasn't come back since!"

I was about to say something in response, but I still had the Doctor to find. However, in my mind, I asked one thing. What in the hell would a young girl be doing in a castle all alone!

"Would you help me find her! I have a feeling the Evil Dr. Eggman has her!"

Okay. That was somewhere to begin. Looking up to the sky, it appeared that the Doctor was out of sight.

"Fine." I remarked, speeding away. "Keep up."

"No worries Shadow!" I looked over my shoulder, but couldn't find her there. "What the-"

"Over here." Looking to my left side she was keeping up with me, or going so slightly slower it was indiscernible. "As you can see, I've grown up a lot!"

"Intruder alert. Must destroy." Several of the Doctor's robots were up ahead, and holding massive shoulder bazookas on their shoulders.

"God Danm it." Jumping into the sky I landed onto the head of one of them, smashing it beyond identification. Continuing that, I did that to several others. But, I did it with care. The weapons they were holding looked prime. I never had thought of trying to use these Eggbot Bazookas before, so however to get it to work would be an issue I'd have to learn on the fly.

With that, cold metal pressed into the back of my neck. Whirling around, I yanked the bazooka out of the Eggbot's hand, and as I did Amy's familiar hammer crashed through it's body.

"Told you I had matured!" I ignored her. Her bragging wasn't going to help me find the Doctor. Walking over to a set of doors, I kicked them off of their hinges. Holding the massive weapon on my shoulder, twice as long as I was tall, I was fully equipped for whatever they were going to bring now, Aliens or Robots.

As I did, sections of the walls slid downward, revealing more launch pads to be released from this location. "Clever." Jumping onto one of them, the location I had been on rushed under my feet as I flew through the air briefly. Rather then a 'theme park', It seemed more like a type of collection of castles, linked by rails and pathways. I had been running on the top levels of these castles obviously, ignoring the insides of it.

"Shadow!" Swiveling my head to point to the young Rose, she pointed to the ground. "I hate ghosts!" The objects that it would seem like we would land on did appear to be like giant ghosts. However, without a doubt, it was just an illusion, projected by the lights

"Relax. It's an illusion." I remarked back, and with the illusion rushing back up toward us, we fell through it. Readying my body for a landing, I saw something beneath us, or rather, someone. And it wasn't the Doctor.

With a loud 'SLAM!' I planted my feet into the ground, my left fist accompanying it, the bazooka still on my right shoulder. The young rabbit that I had seen on my descent staggered backwards a bit, obviously terrified in fear.

"The Doctor isn't here." I called to Amy as she landed behind me. Her landing was much louder, as she slammed her hammer into the ground, transmitting most of her speed into the ground through the hammer while she landed with a slight 'Oof'.

"I thought…he."

"His robots took Cheese!"

"Cheese?" I asked, then remembered the pesky, annoying little thing she often carried with her.

"Which way did they go?"

"That way!" She pointed down a path to our right.

I grunted in annoyance, and skated off in that direction. However, it wasn't very long before I was encountering…a door.

"To easy." Pushing the trigger on the bazooka, the thing vibrated violently, and as I had been unprepared for the launch, I fell forward. While the rocket released went backwards over my right shoulder, and spinning upwards, it crashed into one of the towers. The sound of mortar and bricks shattering could be heard behind me.

"Mr. Shadow?"

"Yes, I know I pointed it the wrong danm way."

"No, it's…"

Looking up after pushing myself back up and turning the bazooka the correct way, I noticed that in front of us were Eggbots. It wasn't an army's worth, but it was still a good amount.

"We're surrounded!" Amy cried, and she backed into me. With a slightly annoyed shrug I sent the pink anthromorphic hedgehog the message to get off of me, and she did. "Hold this." I remarked, placing the weapon in her hands. She struggled with it's weight, and right before going off to Attack Mode she fell over.

Curling into a spindash mode, I slammed right into one of the egg-bots, and after tearing through it, I went through another, and another. The stupid pinball thing that Faker would do was nothing compared to going right through these.

But before long I crashed into something that wasn't mechanic. More alien flesh. Uncurling and landing on the ground, right where the path went to a door, I looked at what exactly I had gone through. All of the Eggbots that had been in front of us, and several aliens that now turned to face me, holding weapons.

With no further instigation, I jumped into the air, then spin dashed again, slamming my body into the first one, then jumping off of it's shattered skull-thing into the next one, working my way back to where the girls were.

"AHHH!"

My red eyes opened in shock from the female's cry in pain, and as it did an alien spear penetrated right into my left eye. With a groan and shout of pain I fell to the ground, on my back and holding my now empty eye-socket, blood spilling from the wound. The Black Arms warrior leaned over me, holding the spear that was tipped with a strange green liquid. It studied me in confusion, and while it did that I planted a firm two-foot kick into it's lower body. It split from the power, and I rolled over, using my still good eye to look at the two females.

"SHADOW!"

The two girls had got themselves caught by the Eggbots that had been behind them. Figures, although the pink one must of put up some kind of fight as several had pancake-shaped imprints into their bodies. However, I would need extra time to take these out. Running forward, and spinning around, I planted a kick onto the one that was holding rabbit. My skate-covered foot crashed right through it's head, and as my body continued it's circular motion I shot out several Chaos Spears, impaling the one that was holding Amy and several other ones. Time seemed to go in slow motion, very slow.

When I did land, the robots were just starting to fall over. Chaos Control. I must have activated it without calling upon it verbally. Taking this time to regain my bazooka, which oddly, none of the enemies bothered messing with, I blasted down the path the way we had been heading. The projectile whizzed out of the tube, and Chaos Control wore off. As the two girls landed on the ground the door ahead shattered from the impact, going out in burning pieces of wood.

"Cheese!"

"Chao Chao!"

"Let's go." Amy called out, and kicking my skates on I headed into the door. Maybe the doctor would be in here, I hadn't seen him in the skies at all this entire time.

"Amy! Go to the sides!" I called, and I jumped onto the side of the corridor. It seemed to go forward in the same direction, but also angle downwards. Floor hadn't been put in, but rather down below was more of that acidic liquid. Despite the fact that my eye socket was already numb to any pain, the gapping hole it left in my head would be perfect for the acid to fry my brain, rather it was organic or robotic. Grinding against the railing, I looked to the other side to see Amy doing the same, one handing holding her dress down so she could keep some modesty, her other held behind her and holding the young rabbit, who wasn't doing as well.

"I'm coming for you-"

"Mrs. Amy, Mr. Shadow! Something's after us!"

Looking over my shoulder, the one that wasn't loaded down with the bazooka, I saw, somewhat, what she was talking about. It looked like a giant scorpion, but it had many, many more legs that sprawled farther out to the sides, allowing it to crawl along the walls. The creature was as wide as the corridor we were grinding down. Jumping on the rail to where I was now skating backwards, I aimed the bazooka with my lone eye and shot.

The creature roared terribly loud from the impact. But it was still racing after us, the large pincers clicking as it gained on us.

"AHH! THE RAILS!" The pink mobian called out.

"AMY!" The other one called.

"SHADOW!" The other hedgehog called again, and I felt the rails drop off form beneath my feet. This meant that we were going to hurl downwards into the acid. A sure death for all of us.

"Rghh. Death to all that opposes me!" I repeated to myself, prepping to land in the water and detonate another Chaos Blast. If I was going to go out like this, I was going to take out as much of this place as I could.

But rather then the acid I hit, I landed, on my back, onto a section of floor. As I did, my body rolled over and I somersaulted backwards, having not been ready for such a landing, at one point crushing the bazooka with my body.

The giant mutated Scorpion then leapt out of the top of the corridor it had been chasing us through, and landed on all of it's legs in front of us. Just a few feet from me. Chaos Energy still ricocheting through my body, ready for the Chaos Blast.

"Girls, stay down." I stated, and with that I jumped upwards, even with it's face. My eye stared into it's innumerable eyes "Chaos BLAST!" The creature was about to try and 'pinch' me, but the blast knocked it backwards, and the shockwave sent it stumbling off the ramp and into the acid. The shockwave also shattered the walls surrounding us, and as it did the entire place began falling down above our heads.

Landing, I pulled out one of the Chaos Emeralds. My shoes ready again, I landed and skated to the girls.

"Amy I'm scared!" The young one said, her body sheltered by the other female. I reached down, grabbed Amy by the nap of the neck, and with only one command I rocketed off, saving their lives much like I had…supposedly…saved Rouge before.

"CHAOS CONTROL!"

This time, rather then warping time, it warped space, and we were soon on the other side of the corridor, two other large doors in front of us, while the sound of collapsing walls and floors sounded behind us. I was no fool though, it was all going to keep falling down like a domino effect toward us.

The girls were to shocked to do anything but stare at me, so I kicked the door down. They swung open and we ran out of the corridor, while the rest of it collapsed behind us. As a group we turned around to see it collapsing behind us, all of it sinking into the acid below.

"Shadow…that was…" Amy began, but was not allowed to finish.

"Destructive, and detrimental to my purposes!" I turned around, and was not greeted with a TV, but the Doctor himself. He was sitting inside a large looking monkey thing. It was painted blue and yellow, not complimentary colors in the greenish-red hue of the sky. One of it's hands terminated in a spiky ball, the other, in a hand made of sword like fingers. The machine itself had to be 10 times my size. "What did you think you were doing?"

"Doctor, I need those Chaos Emeralds!"

"Shadow, forget it! Those Emeralds are mine, all of them! Hand yours over to me now, before I crush you with my Egg Breaker!"

I growled, and put one step back, readying my fighting stance. I might be halfway blinded, but I can still fight. "Girls, stay back, this will get rough."

* * *

I know, it's been to long. I've just been very busty, and not gotten to this. The next chapter will be shorter, yes, but still, I'm trying to figure out just where I want to go with this story. Heck, every bit of this thing is spontaneous, only helped along by you tube walkthroughs. Next chapter though, Shadow Vs. Egg Breaker, first Big Boss fight of the day! REVIEW!


	5. Egg Breaker

Like I said, the Egg Breaker boss. I would of already had this typed and uploaded, but I've allowed myself to be distracted by a side-project, and playing Sonic Adventure 2 along with Godzilla Destroy All Monsters Melee. I hope you enjoy this fight, the chapter will be quite short obviously, but eh, what would you expect?

"Let me show you the power of my latest and greatest creation! The Egg Breaker!"

Kicking my shoes, together, I ran clockwise around it, trying to not only hide my gapping wound where my left eye had been, but to train my only other eye on the Doctor. Hopefully the girls would stay back and not interfere, I wasn't here to play as a hero for a stupid damsel.

"LIGHTS OUT!" The machine leapt into the air near me, and I tried to speed away from it. That proved futile, because when it landed on the ground it slammed it's mace hand into the ground and it released a shockwave that knocked me off of my feet, and I tumbled to the ground.

"Ha! Take this!" Rolling over as soon as I could to face my opponent, it's other hand reaching for me, the sharp fingers ready to make mincemeat of my body. Jumping onto the robot's hand and out of it's grasp, I ran up the arm to try and grab the doctor to yank him out of the machine, as he was still exposed from the chest up.

Before I could even get there though, a familiar hammer slammed through the glass protecting the human's chest, shattering it and just barely missing the doctor himself. Amy jumped back off of the machine, holding her Piko-Piko Hammer tightly in her hand. "Honestly Eggman, can't you just leave us alone?"

The Egg-Carrier's mace hand came to slam her into the ground like a indented pancake, but I wasn't going to have that. Leaping off of this arm, I grabbed the 'elbow' joint for the other and bent it with my momentum. It buckled, and as it did I spun around and kicked it, similar to what my partner Rouge had showed me prior. The screw kick made a shearing sound against the metal, and I fell to the ground. Placing my left hand on the ground to stabilize my body after the landing, I looked over my right shoulder to observe my target.

"How dare you!" Eggman cried, and I could see that the lower half of the mace-arm was sheared off. This left exposed sparking wires in the place of where the elbow joint had been. Before I could prepare another attack though, two sets of cold, metallic hands wrapped around my arms and pulled me up.

How could I have been so foolish? The Eggbots had snuck up behind me, and I left my blind side to them!

"Excellent work my minions!" He called out, and I was lifted into the air.

Curling my body up, but keeping my arms suspended outward, I thrusted myself forward. But it wasn't enough momentum. These Eggbots were really stiff with their grip, and I couldn't get enough momentum!

With a pair of loud, sharp 'CRACKS' I yanked my arms out of my shoulder socket, now leaving my arms as virtually unusable extensions of my body after the bone was separated from the socket. As pain shot through my arms, shoulders, and neck I told myself that this needed to be done, and I curled myself up the rest of the way into a ball, beginning a painful spindash.

The robots that were holding my arms tried to keep a solid grip, but it wasn't good enough, and I rocketed forward, throwing them off of me and before Eggman could see me coming, I slammed my body into the center of his 'glorious' machine. I felt a hint of powerful Chaos energy inside the machine, telling me it must have been powered with a Chaos Emerald. That in itself would prove valuable. The pain shot through my arms again, so intense that I have no idea how I was standing on my own two feet, but the machine merely took several steps back, and only a faint scratch could be seen where I had impacted the machine.

"Ha! My machine is totally invincible to any attacks you can try to use against me!" I would never admit it, but I could only break off his joints. It's power source was to strong for me to attack it head-on, and even my elbow-breaking attack only was due to a massive surge of energy and momentum.

"What about you?" I asked, curling into a ball again and launching myself forward, aiming a little higher this time. Before anything else could be done, I rocketed forward and slammed into the 'head' of the machine, where the Doctor was located. He must of seen me coming, because just before I made impact his Egg-carrier detached from the head of the machine, and my body smashed through a hollow head.

"Ho-ho! I think you forgot a detail or two about me sonny!"

Now I skidded on the ground, looking back up at the now aloft doctor. Dang it, I couldn't spin-dash him from down here, he was to high! "I think you need a bit more lead in your diet!" Several ports slid back on his carrier, and numerous amounts of lead shells tore from the machine-guns installed in his carrier. I leapt and ran, but I couldn't avoid them all. I might be able to withstand bullet usually, but with the gaping hole in my head I couldn't risk it going into my brain. Whether it be machine or flesh, it would kill me.

"NOOOO!" I heard a loud smash, and looked up to see Amy's familiar hammer buried within the front of the carrier. It began steaming, and plummeted downwards. The automated gunfire stopped, and it plummeted into the ground and smashed itself apart when it did.

"All in a days work!" Amy called out, walking up from behind to retrieve her hammer. I also went up to the machine, and yanked the doctor upwards as he stumbled to crawl away.

"Where is it doctor?" I might have only been a meter tall, and the human was nearly twice my height, but it got the message across.

"What? Where is what?"

"Where's that DANM Fourth Chaos Emerald?"

"Uh, I don't know!"

"That's a lie Doctor! And you know it!" With a throw, he went flying several feet backwads, rolling over several times before landing on his side. "I need those Chaos Emeralds. And if I have to kill you piece by piece, I will do it." Snarling, I bent down and grabbed his ankle, flexing it backwards extremely fast as a snap sounded, shattering his ankle bone. The old man screamed in pain. "So Doctor, where is it?"

"Shadow! You don't need to be that cruel!"

"Quiet Amy!" I shouted back at her, but still releasing the grip on him anyways.

"It's in the robot! In the center! By the power core! Oh please!"

"Thank you." I harshly commented, walking over to the fallen machine. With my good eye, I looked at the fallen machine. Jumping onto the empty, smashed head, my glance cast into the darkness inside it. Pulling out one of the emeralds, I looked and beheld the inside as the emerald glowed.

A white glow from the center of the machine corresponded with the green one I had, and reaching in I yanked out the fourth Emerald.

_-Begin flashback-_

_Casting my gaze down to the blue planet, I raised the corners of my mouth slightly. "It's all going according to plan._

"_Shadow! Everyone is doing their hardest to save the planet! Won't you help them?"_

_I didn't even turn away form the window, my eyes kept steady on the globe that was coming closer. "Why? They all deserve it, those humans."_

"_Well, they're not all bad. You know, as a group, they can be really great!" I turned my gaze around to look at the young pink hedgehog that was talking to me. "How about it Shadow? At least give them a chance."_

_-Flashback within a flasback…oh geez-_

"_Please Shadow! Do it for me! For all the people on that planet! Give them a chance to be happy! Sayonnara, Shadow the Hedgehog!"_

_-End The second flashback, back to original flashback-_

"_Give them…a chance." I recited to myself. This girl reminded me of Maria. And the true promise. Turning around I started out toward the door._

"_Shadow, where are you going!"_

_I turned back to face her. "I have to stop this colony from crashing into earth. I need to keep my promise to Maria…" My gaze set itself on the young 13 year old creature. "…and you." With that, I kicked my shoes together and sped off toward the center of the Cannon's core._

_-End flashback-_

I'll leave it there for now. I hope you enjoyed this, it was a bit hard for me to write it. I know, Cream/Cheese just kind of disappeared, but eh, imagine that they were in the fetal position in the background this entire time, as to write them into a fight like this would be hard to do. REVIEW!


	6. Memories Unfading

Well folks, this here is the next chapter, already being written. I need to give a hearty thanks to Lucy Labrador, as she is, currently, the only one reviewing this story consistently, but that may soon change. Just for information though, if you want this story updated sooner and faster, review. Reviews are like collecting a bunch of rings and then hitting the 'B' button in SAB2's two player mode. You suddenly get sped up!

* * *

Anyways, here, Shadow goes for a nice little flashback adventure. I hope you'll enjoy, because HERE WE GO!

"Push there." My voice growled. Amy's let hand held my shouder firmly, and she tried to push my right arm back into the socket. My other arm was still laying useless beside me, so I had no way to relive the pain.

"Don't worry Mr. Shadow. Amy is great with this kind of stuff." Cream's high pitched, irritating voice ran out as she stood over me.

"Thanks for letting me know." I snapped back, but she must not have realized it. "YAAAOOOOWWWWW!" I screamed out in pain as my arm was slammed back into it's socket roughly.

"Relax Shadow. Besides, I still have one more arm to do!"

"Oh brilliant." I growled back, regretting it afterwards. She was being kind enough to try and help me out at least. It reminded me of when I had snapped at Rouge this last spring during our 'adventure'.

"Well, at least they didn't break any bones or anything."

"They poked my eye out." I growled back at her.

"Yes. But you seem to be just as good without it." She remarked, firmly grasping my separated joint pieces.

"Just get it done and over with." The pain made me talkative, and this girl made me to talkative. I didn't like it.

"Hold still." I could feel as she forced my arm back into the socket. With a loud snap similar to what I had heard when popping them out. "CHAOS DANM IT!" I screamed, trying hard not to tap into the energy from the four Chaos Emeralds and blowing this location up.

"Relax Shadow. Try taking several calm, deep breaths."

I laid on my front, still with my face laying on the ground as my breath kicked up minor dust plumes. "If that wasn't beneficial to me, I would of killed you by now." I growled at her.

She chuckled. Of all things, she CHUCKLED? That's ridiculous!

"Mr. Shadow, Mrs, Amy is being very nice to you! You should at least try to be kind back."

"Cream." The pink hedgehog that was still pinning me on my back caught the attention of the young rabbit. "Remember what we talked about? 'Mrs' is for married women. I'm not married to Sonic yet. It is still 'Miss'."

"Still, Mr. Shadow, you should be kinder to her."

I turned my head and looked at her with my good eye. "Thank you…Amy." I snarled.

"That's better I think." She remarked while stepping off of my back, and brushing her gloved hands off. I rolled onto my back, and then pulled myself up. I could feel it again. Chaos Energy, and it was nearby.

"The Doctor! He's not done yet!" I readied a Chaos Spear in my hand, and Amy summoned her Piko-Piko hammer. Putting our backs up against each other so we could see all around with no blind spots, we waited. And waited. It seemed to be right behind me, and not quite as strong as a Chaos Emerald.

Whirrling around suddenly I grabbed Amy's wrist, the one that was not holding her hammer. "Shadow!" She cried out. But my attention was focused on her wrist.

"Where did you get this?" I asked, holding up her right wrist, adorned with two gold bracelets. One of them I could feel was full of Chaos Energy.

"I…I…"

"Rose, answer me!"

"It was a memento of you when you died. Sonic had it for a time, but he said I should keep it, as it would look better on me." I held her hand tightly in my grasp still, my iron gaze starring at her.

"You have any clue how much power that thing has in it?"

"What?"

"That ring by itself has enough to destroy you, me, cream, the remains of that robot, and everything else within two square klicks of here!" I cried out, infuriated. "What do you mean when I died?"

"You still don't remember Shadow?"

"…"

"You died trying to keep the ARK from crashing into earth. Surely you remember?"

I turned my gaze and looked into the Chaos Emerald, taking a step back from her, but still holding her in my grasp tightly.

* * *

_-Flashback-_

"_Okay! Everyone ready to go in?" Eggman called, sitting in his walking version of the Egg-Carrier._

"_You couldn't stay away from me forever!" Suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around me from behind. "I've been so worried about you!"_

"_Maria!" I cried out louder then I ever had before in shock. Turning around I grabbed the one of the arms that was wrapped around me. Rather then human skin, It was pink fur. Following the gaze onward, I realized then this was not Maria. It was a young-looking pink Hedgehog, not to dissimilar to me that was now looking at me in confusion. My gaze hardened a bit, as did my grip. But she had stirred some memories within me, memories that didn't need to be brought back right now. Maria's kind eyes could be seen copied in her own. _

"_You're not Sonic! Who are you!" Like a cornered animal, she swung her head back and forth, observing Rouge and Eggman. "Dr. Eggman! Ahhh!" She yanked herself out of my grip, and started to run off. Kicking my shoes together I began to give chase._

"_Shadow! No! I'll take care of the girl! You just go and continue the plan!"_

_I wanted to protest. However, looking at the fleeing hedgehog, I realized within a nano-second that keeping her around with do little more then hinder us. Turing back around we charged into the door, busting it down and flying into it, Rouge going one way, I going another._

* * *

-End Flashback-

"Shadow?" Amy snapped her fingers, but didn't dare to put her hands between the gaze betwixt me and the Chaos Emerald. Turning my head upwards, I looked at Amy. She looked older compared to the vision, maybe two, three years older.

"Rose, when you first met me…" I looked right into her eye. "You weren't looking for me, were you?"

She stepped back apprehensively. "I…No. I was going to free Sonic."

I smirked. For sure now these emeralds were bringing back MY memories.

"Thanks Rose. For my arms."

"But your eye?" She asked.

I ran my hand over the corresponding gaping eye wound. "I can still see. I'm not dead yet. Whatever you do…be careful. That ring of yours possess great power, and if you use it in the wrong state of mind, it could be hazardous."

"Wait! Shadow! How do you even use it?"

I didn't answer her. If she didn't know how to use it after two, maybe three years, she would probably never figure out how to use it. Silently, I bent space with a Chaos Control.

* * *

"What's going on with me? These memories…They seem to be coming back to me. But I still don't know who I am." I looked back up at the forest scenery, burning ashes coating the air. "And the Black Creatures…how do they know me?" I gritted my teeth. "And just who was I before all of this?"

A loud noise filled my head, and I looked around as the scenery seemed to vanish around me. "Wait…what?" Before long, everything had fallen from me, and I was floating in pitch black, save for a blue light below me and white 'lights' in the distances.

I was in Space.

"Shadow…You seem troubled…"

I whirled around to face the Alien."

"You! Who are you!

"Look." The creature pointed down, and I followed his gaze.

What I saw looked impressive enough. It had to be the size of a city, like half of a sphere. Lights were illuminated through various windows and hallway lights.

"Wait…that's me?" My 20/20 vision easily caught two characters running down a hallway.

It was me, and pulling Maria behind me. This was the only memory I had before all of this. Why did he need to re-show me this?

"That's right. Never forget this, what those horrible humans did to you!"

I pulled out one of the Chaos Emeralds, staring into it intently. Again, everything dropped away from me, except for a memory.

* * *

_-Begin Flashback-_

"_Shadow! We can't just leave everyone here!"_

"_I know Maria!" I shouted back at her, jumping onto a raising platform and pulling a lever. "I'm going to get them out."_

"_Shadow! You can't kill them!"_

"_I'm going to have to." I remarked, grabbing a rifle off the side of one of the walls and throwing several magazines of ammunition in my quills. "This is the point where the end justifies the means Maria."_

"_Shadow…I…"_

_The platform stopped, and I kicked down the door it opened to. Readying the rifle, I held it up to the door in front of me. The soliders had made several hastily constructed locks on it, and they were quite weak. Shooting them off with several rounds, the door slid open and I skated in._

"_Maria, don't come with me. Stay at the escape pods."_

"_I'm not going to leave you!"_

"_Fine then." I remarked back, and curling into a spindash, I slammed right through the next door._

"_Hey! It's that Evil Creature!"_

"_Get that Creature!" Another solider shouted. I was going to fast, and I bowled into one, every bone below his waist snapping as I ran over him. Uncurling rapidly, I started firing at the other solider, who's body recoiled backwards with the shots._

_This might be graphic. Maria might be 14 years old, but she's lived a sheltered life. To see this death suddenly smack her like this may be to much. But, it has to be done._

"Remember Shadow? These humans assaulted you and the ones closest to you all those years ago."

_With a punch this time, the next door flew open. Several more armed military men stood there. Going as fast as I could, I activated my right hover-skate while keeping my left to the ground, sending me spinning in an arc while shooting countless holes in the bodies of each and every one of them._

"_Shadow…" Maria cried behind me. Yes, this was to much for her. But still, I needed to do this!_

"_I wish there was another way Maria. I'm sorry." Reaching back and grabbing her hand with my other arm, I pulled her along._

_And it continued like that for some time. I would open doors, kill soliders, the entire time trying to console Maria and blocking that naseous feeling in my stomach._

"See. They defiled your precious home. You took matters into your hands and killed them all, like you will kill every human."

_Jumping onto a set of giant fans, I cocked the gun as various GUN soliders on our sides tried to hit moving targets. I couldn't kill them all, but grabbing the fake emerald that Gerald had given me, I took what little energy it had._

"_Chaos Spear!" While shooting the villainous people to my right, I blindly shot a Chaos Spear behind me, and it broke the platform. It slid out from beneath the cold, heartless soldiers and they fell into the spinning fan blades. My body, and that of Maria's was lighter compared to them, full grown men wearing nearly a hundred pounds worth of body armor and the like. The blood that splattered down there also flew upwards, caking the two of us in blood also._

_We landed, just behind the next door, and Maria collapsed onto all fours. "We need to go!"_

_She responded by grabbing her stomach. "I…I Think I can go on." Her face, usually a pale-white was now splotched with small things of blood, her dress likewise covered._

"_Here. Let me help you out a bit." Learning forward I drug my tongue across her check. The blood tasted hot, and didn't resound well. But there was nothing else to wipe it on, and if her grandfather, if he was still alive, saw her like this…well._

"_Let's move it." Kicking the next door down and unleashing a bunch of bullets, the air in the room exploded in a bunch of smoke. The natural diffusion of air coming into the room did fade the smoke out…_

_And revealed that the soliders that I assumed where in here were all still standing. "Rghh. Maria, get down."_

_She looked at me, tears still in her eyes, but knowing what I was going to do, her frail body laid down on the floor. Jumping into the air and taking the last of the emerald's energy, I detonated a Chaos Blast._

_The blast was enough to yank the shoulders and head off of every single solider. They didn't have time to scream or anything. It was quick, violent, and vicious._

_Their blood was cast upon the walls of the room, about five feet up. Landing back onto the ground, and forcefully pulling Maria up, I kicked down the next door with a furious kick. She was crying, it was to much for her. I could tell that now._

"_We can mourn later Maria." With a final powerful chaos spear, the next door came crashing down. Several scientists, including Dr. Robotnik, stood there, looking at Maria and I in amazement._

"_Shadow!"_

"_Maria is safe, like you charged me."_

"_I told you two to get to the escape pods."_

"_We will now." I said, back, turning around. The world was somewhat spinning. The adrenaline rush I was on fading away._

"_You need to hurry. They will be sending reinforcements soon!"_

"_I will Doctor…" I had just killed humans. I had taken lives, with a single twitch of my fingers. The thought sickened me. Just like must have done to Maria. The adrenaline rush couldn't keep it away now. I fell to the floor, and began heaving violently._

"_Shadow! Are you okay?"_

_My vision became blury, and hot bile rushed up my esophagus, burning it as the contents from my last meal spewed out of my mouth and nose, and onto the floor in a fury._

"_I…I will be fine." I killed countless people…My…god. I could feel Maria put her arm on my back, like a sister trying to comfort a younger brother, and my face hardened again. Taking my tongue and licking off the excess that was left on my lips, I grasped her hand. "Let's go." I said and we ran off toward the escape pods._

* * *

_-_End Flashback-

Opening my eyes, I rolled over. Still on the green grass in the forest, ash-filled sky and air still surrounding me. It must have been a hallucination, me seeing Black Doom. But the Memories…They were real. They felt real.

"Even if these Memories are not real…" I still wasn't fully ready to rule out the android possibility yet. "It's still me…Shadow the Hedgehog." Recalling the memories from earlier, I stood up. "And I will fulfill my promise to Maria! As of now, that is the only thing that matters to me!"

Pulling one of the Chaos Emeralds from my back, I grasped it tightly. "Maria, I remember my promise. I promise Revenge for you! For what the Black Aliens have done to these pathetic humans, and what the humans have done to themselves!"

Looking up to the sky above, I saw several F-15 Eagles fly overhead, chasing down some flying Black Alien Creatures. "Let me show you…My True Power!" Jumping onto one of the trees, and jumping from tree-to-tree in pursuit of the battle, I made my mind up for now. I had a planet to protect. There are still innocents, and I still have to protect them.

* * *

I was stuck on this chapter, but thanks to you tube walkthroughs, AND a special video made just today, I was able to finish this well. Now Shadow has chosen his path! Now, let's see how it unwinds from here on out!

The video I highly recommend would be 'Shadow the hedgehog - Somewhere I belong' by 'Shadoukun1'. The video was powerful enough for me to finish this, even though most of the lines from the end of this chapter was taken from that video. Also, REVIEW! And, check out my Side-Project I've just now posted!


	7. Battle of the Eclipse Cannon

You know, I remember writing this, quite poorly, in the original version of Faded Memories. However, Now I decided to follow the game much, much closer. I know it seems like a helluva jump if your trying to follow this story using the common paths in STH. I jumped from Semi-Dark to Semi-Hero in a snap. However, it is my story, and just try to follow with me here!

Anyways, thanks to all my reviewers. I'll call you all out by name in order of most Reviews!

Lucy Labrador

ShadowMiku

Engineer of the Uprising

ShadeTH9 Scourge

HERE WE GOOOO!

* * *

The remains of the last Black Creature burned on the runway. I leapt off of the wing of the remaining F-15 jet. The pilot seemed anxious to stay away from me, as I was, from what I understood, still wanted by GUN, and known to be a 'terrorist'.

My eyes drew away from it and to the surroundings. There were some grind rails leading into the forest, and the forest was thick, lush, green. It wasn't damaged by human hands. The sunlight here was still muted, smoke from the city not far from here burning. I wasn't sure where I was. I know I started on the nation's East-Coast and had worked my way westward, but the names of any cities were just blurs to me. And besides, the Fighter Jet flew to fast for me to keep up with.

The sound of an engine could be heard behind me. Clenching the Chaos Emerald in my other hand, and whirling around with a Chaos Spear ready, I saw the noise maker.

It looked like a giant ship. It wasn't nearly as large as the Vision I had of the ARK, but still, it was large. The sides were lined with wings, and the front was pointed It had a large runway on the front of it, lined by palm trees. About center on the ship's deck was what looked to be a large command station, probably where the engine and control rooms were located. ON the back were eight tubes, each putting out a steady stream of smoke and fumes.

"What's up Shadow?" On the side of the ship, looking right at me, was that annoying blue faker again.

'Goddanm it.' I whispered to myself. "Not you again."

"Good to see you to." He cockily responded back. "Those black creatures are headed out into space. We're on our way to the ARK. I guess that means that you'll be going with us to?" He asked, tapping his foot impatiently and casting occasional glances skyward.

I looked at the Emerald I held in my hand. ARK. My memories kept pointing there. Maybe I should take the chance and see just what was there, waiting for me.

"Come one! Let's roll! The Blue Typhoon's next stop is: ARK!"

Reluctantly I leapt onto the same wing that Faker was on. Ignoring him as he said more loud-mouth gibberish to me, I climbed up the side of the ship until I found an open entrance. The spacecraft began to lift off, and after Faker zoomed in behind me, I shut the door with a red button mounted inside by the door.

* * *

The sight scared me. From looking down from space onto the back of it, I could only see the rounded half of the Semi-Circle. The front half was a different story. It was cut off right through the center plane of the circle, and along with four engine turbines, in the center was located a large, pointed gun, half-open and in poor condition.

"Why. Why does this place haunt me so. This is only the place where…"

-_Flashback-_

"_Maria, this is what you wanted right?" I remarked, falling downward. The heat of the Earth's atmosphere burned against my back, and summoning the last bit of energy I could feel from the Chaos Emeralds, I silently activated a final Chaos Control. Hopefully I would land close enough to the surface to survive the fall._

_The light changed around me, and suddenly, a green and gray scenery of rocks and grass quickly rushed up to meet me. I closed my eyes, bracing for impact._

_The only thing that greeted me was a loud snap from my body and quickly surrounding coldness. Isolation._

-End Flashback-

"Where I died…"

_-Flashback-_

"_Shadow! I beg of you! Please! Do it for me!"_

_I banged my fists against the glass. "Maria!"_

"_For all the people on that planet! Give them a chance!"_

_My mouth gaped open, and the doors into the room whooshed open again. I could hear one of the evil soldiers scream at Maria to let go of the lever. But her soft face, pale from her severe loss of blood had hardened into a mask of determination and sadness. With a literal death Grip, her hand gripped the lever. Blood was already trailing from where she had landed from the initial gunshot impact in her lungs to where she had currently crawled to grab the lever._

"_Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog." With that, the gun the solider was holding was fired, and this time it entered through the back of her skull, and intruded out in the left side of her temple. The momentum carried her brains and skull fragments with it, and her body slumped downward._

_And as it did, her hand pulled the lever downward. The floor under the capsule I was encase in suddenly dropped away from under me, and I was launched into space. My legs lost their balance, and I fell backwards, banging my head against the opposite wall._

"_Maria…"_

_-End Flashback-_

"Where Maria…Died." A trembling, cold feeling pressed through my chest. This can't be. "I am the Ultimate Lifeform." I said to myself. "I can't let emotions get in the way of my true purpose."

"Alright! Bring it on!" Sonic shouted obnoxiously, running up beside me and looking out the window. He looked out the window, and my gaze followed his. It appeared that more of the Flying Black Aliens had congregated around the dilapidated gun on the ARK. "You up for this Shads?" Without another word, Faker ran off, leaving me to look out the window on my own. However, now having an idea on what was up ahead, I pulled out the green Chaos Emerald I had and followed him. I might just need his help.

* * *

"Hey Shads! Remember when we raced here? How long is this thing anyway? Huh?" He shut up, finally, for one danm Second. Only one. "Shadddooww, do you even hear me?"

That's it. I had it up to my ears at that point! Spinning around and sticking the rifle I had found abandoned on the ARK in his mouth, I cocked it.

"Faker, say my name one more time, or call me Shads and you WILL be speaking out of the back of your head!" I yanked the rifle out of his mouth and continued back through the halls.

"Okay then. But still, do you remember when we used to race here?"

I ignored him. The path ahead was long. It didn't seem to be broken up by anything other then occasional jumps where the path had slightly fallen apart.

"Man…that was fun. I totally KO'ed your ass Shads!"

I looked at the blue Faker running beside me.

"I'm sure that wouldn't of been possible." Smirking, I kicked a little faster forward, and he kept up with me.

"Oh, but I sure did! I had a fake emerald, if you remember!"

I looked at him again, still running forward and not slacking my pace in the least.

"You still don't remember, do you Shadow?"

Jumping over another gap, I tried pulling away from him again.

"Guess not. Well, do you at least remember how long this is?"

"4.5 Kilometers." I said, from memory. What memory, I wasn't sure.

"Good to know. Because I like-"

I tuned him out then and there. UP ahead was a tunnel, so apparently we were just about done traversing this 'bridge'. Dashing inside, although for only a short period of time, I saw a giant computer, with numerous holographic screens circling it's base and the sides. This computer was obviously inside a circular tube, as there was no corners to the wall, and only a roof. I couldn't help but wonder how far down the cylinder went.

And that was when I could feel it. Down below. A long way down. Chaos Energy. Only powerful enough to be a Chaos Emerald.

"I still wonder how far down this goes." The blue Hedgehog remarked.

"Only one way to find out." I said, mostly to myself. Curling into a ball, I launched myself off the railing. In a flash I impacted the wall, and bounced off of it. Right onto the thick metal beam that was supporting the supercomputer. Uncurling and wrapping my arms around it, I held on for dear life with a death grip. Down I slid, my hands and feet protected from the massive friction by my gloves and hover shoes respectively. Looking over my shoulder and down, a black void could be seen at the end of the tunnel, rushing upwards to greet me.

The beam I was sliding on suddenly split into seven thinner beams, all heading to the wall. Letting go, I had to let myself fall. With that I fell through what seemed to be a semi-permeable membrane, going into space. The black void of space. But as I looked back up at ARK, I could see the two giant coolant fan blades and the dilapidated gun.

A screech distracted my attention from the super weapon, and turning around a flying black alien rushed at me. Kicking my hover shoes together, it gave me just the boost I needed. As it flew under me, I grabbed it's head roughly, and it squealed.

"Shut up and fly straight!" I shouted at it. Pushing it's head forward, it suddenly jerked, and flew straight. I could sense it even better now. Another Chaos Emerald. It would be my sixth one. I was able to feel it in the computer core, but I wanted to be sure. Continuing to push the beast's head forward, we glided forward.

Sure enough, up ahead, was a massive son of a bitch. The thing had to be at least 20 feet. It had each of it's feet on the back of one of the same flying aliens I was on. It's arms were huge and bulky, and it almost looked like it was made of rock and magma.

"My…Gosh." The creature was made of something burning hot, for sure. Several smaller black creatures were also flying around the main cannon, trying to weld pieces of it back together. Apparently it had been very heavily damaged. However, the 'welding' part of the job was being done by the large creature. It simply put it's hand on the two pieces needed to be fused, and then when it released it a few seconds later, they were cooling as one piece.

Not to mention, the Chaos Emerald felt extremely close. Yet I couldn't see it. Wherever it was, it also would probably end up playing a pivotal factor in this battle also. I had no guns on me, only the 5 Chaos Emeralds, and the stealth/luck that prevented them from seeing me.

Perfect. Readying a Chaos Spear, I aimed it at the large creature's arm, just as it started to meld two more parts of the gun together. Silently calling upon the weapon of choice, the speak arced across space, and severed it's arm just below the 'shoulder'.

The creature roared in pain, but I couldn't hear it. I couldn't hear anything in space. So to give a more accurate description, it was more of a opening it's mouth. The flying creatures it was on rushed toward me, and I guided my own 'beast' forward at my one-armed enemy.

With his remaining arm, he swiped out at me. I ducked instantly, and like I planned, it swung him around me, out of control. he slipped off of the flying aliens, and I shot a Chaos Spear right into his hollowed-out shoulder where a arm used to be. The result was enough to catch him outside of the light gravity field surrounding ARK, and pulled by the gravity of Earth.

"Heh. To easy for me!" I called. The other aliens had all dispersed after witnessing my power. Now I could resume my search for the Chaos Emerald. It's presences was moving again, downwards… "God no." Yes. The Emerald was moving down, down toward earth. Pressing the creature I was on forward, we began dive-bombing it.

There it was alright. The magma creature was just entering the atmosphere. I reached forward to grab the Chaos Emerald out of it's now burning open stomach, but yanked my hands back in pain. It was WAY to hot! To put any of my limbs in their was virtually suicide! I was still short an eye, and I didn't need to be short of an arm to!

I pushed the flying alien's head forward again, and it flew right toward the falling alien. Head-first. Instantly yanking it's head back from the back of the neck, the now-burning alien I had been riding flapped and swiveled out of control. I jumped off of it, reaching forward to the sixth Chaos Emerald.

My hand reached for it as it also punctured a hole in the atmosphere. Again, I could feel tremendous friction heat on my fur.

"I am NOT going to die again!" My fingers just barely touched the purple emerald. "Chaos…CONTROL!"

In a flash, earth vanished from my eyes. I was back on the halls of ARK. The six emeralds surrounded me like a ring around a planet. Still on all fours after discharging so much energy to do that time-space bend, involuntarily I gasped for air.

The Chaos Emeralds were already re-loading my power. I could feel it coming back to me.

"Well Done Shadow."

I looked up. My one good eye caught the figure I wanted to still take out. The leader of those Black Aliens. Black Doom.

* * *

CLIFFHANGER! Kind. Acutally, in nearly 3 years in writing on this site, this is only my second cliffhanger. Not a good record. Well, will Shadow go around and kick Doom's as, or get his eye back then go to a different famous boss battle then come back later and kick Doom's ass then? You'll see. REVIEW!

Also, I'll be out of town for a bit over a week. Don't bother PM'ing me.


	8. The Diablon

Okay! I'm back. It took a bit. Still, I have returned from Camp Yeshua, and even got time to complete the hero story in SAB2! Meaning all I have left is the Final Story. That may take a while, so obviously I'll be stocking up on lives for some time.

Anyways, thanks again to all of my reviewers. To the guest that asked on if I would complete Split Attractions or not, I've got the 10th and Final chapter halfway written, but I have no drive to complete it right now. Sorry.

Anyways, HERE WE GO!

"_At least I'll get to go out with these marvelous gems surrounding me." _

_I spun around and threw the missile at the opposing Apache chopper that had launched it. The missile crashed through the front window, destroying it._

_The bullet went right in between two of Maria's middle ribs, and the impact knocked her off of her feet and landing on the floor, blood beginning to stain her dress. The wound would definitely be fatal._

"_You could at least give the humans a chance!" Amy remarked to me._

_I fell to the floor, and began heaving violently._

"_Shadow! Are you okay?"_

_My vision became blury, and hot bile rushed up my esophagus, burning it as the contents from my last meal spewed out of my mouth and nose, and onto the floor in a fury. I killed countless people…My…god. _

"_Shadow! I beg of you! Please! Do it for me!"_

_I banged my fists against the glass. "Maria!"_

"_For all the people on that planet! Give them a chance! Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog."_

"_You're not Sonic! Who are you!" Amy shouted in my face._

Light poured back into my vision. One of the black creatures looked down at me, holding a strange gun to my face that was filling the 'hole' in my head with soothing, yet alien, warmth. Instinctively, I raised my fists up to grab it's throat and rip it's head off, but my arms were chained. Not with any normal chains, but with something a lot more powerful. I could feel it taking power away from me, but not enough to kill me.

Clicking noises. They were communicating between themselves. One of them pointed to me with it's claws. I growled at it.

Suddenly, the warm feeling over my empty eye-socket ceased, and once again I could see. See from both eyes at once.

"Ah. Your awake Shadow." That raspy voice only belonged to one being. Black Doom. "Congratulations on gaining six of the emeralds. I had expected no less." I couldn't see it, it must have been behind me. Again trying to lean forward into a sitting position the chains restrained me. "Still, I need that seventh emerald…" It said.

"What do you need with them?"

It released a raspy laugh. "It's complicated. Get me the seventh emerald and then I'll tell you."

I could remember a fragment of a thought. Deceiving Dr. Eggman for the seven emeralds. Black Doom was doing to me what I did to him.

"This isn't a bargin." I remarked. The six other emeralds had been surrounding me on six tables of their own. Focusing some of the chaos energy from them, I was able to shoot a light Chaos Blast. Enough to break the chains.

"Your right. It's not a bargain. This is the fulfillment of your promise."

"From all that I remember…" I turned around and faced it head on. "I never promised you anything."

Suddenly a sharp pain struck me in the right hand. My mouth released an involuntary scream, and I fell to my knees on the cold floor. Grabbing my burning hand and ripping the glove off of it, I could see a strange insignia carved into it, as if by a dull knife, but the 'wound' seemed to have been healed years ago, looking more like a scar. It looked a bit like…the insignia that was imprinted on all the ARK's files about me.

"You will get the Seventh Emerald. And you WILL bring it to me!" It shouted at me.

"Hell no." My hand burned in pain again, and the insigna glowed a stunning bright orange. Growling through gritted teeth, I slammed my other fist into the ground. "I will not serve you Black Doom." My voice was trembling, but I still had the six chaos emeralds. I could attack him at the least. "Chaos…"

"Shield." It finished the sentence for me, and around it was a steady, yellow-tinted clear shield. Made of pure Chaos Energy. "Chaos SPEAR!" Shooting from my pained hand the spear went directly toward the defense. Yet it merely bounced off, and slammed into the ceiling above us. "Chaos…BLAST!" The command detonated a more powerful Chaos Blast then I had done earlier. The entire room vibrated, but the walls held up, as did the shield.

"Hahahahaha." It took down the shield, and again my hand pained me. This time the pain shot up my arm, and right up to my brain. "Shadow, you will forever be a servant of Black Doom. That is your purpose! That is who you are!"

I couldn't talk, couldn't move. Couldn't speak. The pain wasn't just in my arm. It was overwhelming my entire body. Every bit of it. What I wouldn't give to make the pain stop…

"You will get me the Seventh Emerald, and you will fulfill the promise. Understood?"

Pain…shut it off. Shut it off.

"Won't you?"

"Yes."

"Yes…what?"

"Yes…I will get…" Despite the pain racking my body, I still could control my speech just enough. "The Seventh Emerald."

"Good." Suddenly, as if millions of needles were yanked out of my body, the pain stopped. Almost like it never happened. Shaking my head back and forth, I stood up, summoning the other six emeralds to me. "And remember Shadow. I will watch everything you do." A familiar white light surrounded me, and again I was gone.

When the light faded and I dropped to my feet, I looked around my NEW surroundings. And to be honest, it wasn't much different then the room I just left.

"Shadow!"

The voice was a bit difficult to place. Sounded young, like a young boy on the cuff of maturity.

"Shadow! It's great to see you here!"

And that one was a bit easier to familiarize myself with. The red character that Faker always hanged out with it seemed. Knuckles? Yeah. Knuckles.

"I told ya that Sonic and Shadow would have been here at the same time!" The young female. Rose.

My back was turned to them all, so I turned to face them, the six emeralds still spinning around me rapidly. "What?"

"Sonic and the…thing, went in here searching for the source of the Black Aliens!" Knuckles stated. "We were supposed to come a bit later to see if we could add any backup to their cause."

"What thing?"

"Oh yeah! The Diablon! It's supposed to be a GUN built super-powered robot that can take out anything. It's like the Old Flying Dog design, but upgraded and expanded on." The yellow two-tailed fox remarked. I remembered that he was also running around with Sonic, even aiding him in that 'adventure' thing from three months ago, but still, I don't think we had ever traded names before.

But the name GUN made my blood boil angry. I could remember that logo on the shirt sleeves of the men that boarded the ARK and killed…possibly everybody on there?

"Shadow, since you have the last six emeralds, maybe you and Sonic could get together and team up like last time?"

Last time? I raised an eyebrow.

"Remember Amy? He doesn't have his memory back." The echidna scolded.

"Oh. Yeah. Back when you two…saved the earth…the first time."

I looked at Rose slightly more interested, but more important things needed to be answered and solved. "Does he has the seventh Chaos Emerald?"

The yellow one shook his head again. "No. The seventh emerald is Diablon's primary Power source. However, maybe if you and Sonic?"

"I'll take care of this myself." Spinning on my heels and turning on my rocket shoes, I sped off, leaving the trio long behind me, speeding down the corridors of this mysterious place.

Every corridor, every ominous path looked almost the same. Literal mirror images of each other. I would never admit it, but…I was lost. Where the hell was this place anyway, and why could I not find either Sonic, or that Diablon Machine?

A light vibration shook the corridor I was running down. I had no idea if I had taken this way before, or how long I had been running. Skidding to a stop, and looking up, I could feel another vibration, one right above me. My ears twitched, sounds of human machinery.

Bending down to prepare for a jump, I listened for anything else that might be a giveaway as to if this was that 'Diablon' machine or not. However, deciding against waiting forever, my crouched figure sprung upwards. My body crashed through the ceiling and into another room, and through that room and into one above it.

The room I landed in was a bit to dark, and there didn't seem to be any sign of life. Realizing after a brief second of confusion I skipped the floor necessary, I swung my body down to greet the Human machine.

The design was…odd. It resembled the upper half of a suit of human armor. A large chest plate, two super-extended arms, and a 'helmet' for a head that had some guns mounted where the ears should have been. It was colored Red and Yellow, and it was pretty easy to see the large GUN logo on it's side. Below where the 'torso' was, a giant wheel showed how it got around, as the wheel was able to also spin around before rolling, allowing the machine a 360 range of motion.

"I found you, you devil!" An amplified voice shouted from the machine. It was pointless to say anything to it. I needed that Chaos Emerald. And not for Black Doom's purposes. "Now, Justice is served! This is for Maria!"

Instantly, my feet locked up, and I skidded to a stop. "What!"

"You heard me! You killed them all! Everyone on the ARK! My family! Maria!"

"…The Hell are you talking about? I didn't kill Maria! Who are you to even suggest that!"

"I know who you are Shadow the Hedgehog! You were created by that alien and that mad scientist Gerald! Obviously you were made to serve them, help in this invasion! I won't allow it!"

Suddenly, bullets tore from the guns mounted on the side of the machine's head. I leapt into the air, dodging them cleanly. That's when I realized…I didn't have a gun. "Danm." Hoping that the Chaos Emeralds would work just as well against the machine, a Chaos Spear shot at the Machine.

The Diablon rocketed backwards. A smoking spot was left on the right side of the 'chest'. It seemed to be slightly hollowed in, but not enough to show any significant damage. Running forward to try and detonate a Chaos Blast, I leapt into the air.

Only to suddenly feel the world blow by me as I skidded on my back across the ground. My head banged against a small alien cube. The arms of the thing kept spinning around, and I realized then that the advantage the thing had was a full 360 degree range of motion. My best chance would be to attack it from above.

Coming back to my feet, I charged at it, looking to make the same stupid mistake. However, just before it's shoulders and the axle connecting them started spinning to smack me again, I changed direction, circling the machine as fast as I could. Recalling this ability while fighting with Rouge and Omega earlier this year, I could only hope it would give the same basic result. Fate must have been on my side, because indeed the Tornado wind worked against it. The machine was twirled out of control, and shortly was on it's back, looking up at me.

Launching my body downwards at it, I smacked the head of the machine as many times as I could. The 'visor' on the machine began shattering quickly, but not quickly enough.

Bullets tore through my sides, and my body flew backwards as they punctured my lungs and ribs. Sliding backwards, dragging one hand on the ground to slow myself, I tried to keep the blood down. It was useless, the damage was bad enough that I half-coughed up blood. The Dark Red, almost Black substance ran down my lips and chin, a few errant drops falling to the floor and one on my glove.

"Ha! So you can bleed, you devil! Now hold still you devil!"

Frankly, I was sick of it shouting at me and calling me a devil. Running forward at it again, I leapt into the air and twisted my body to roundhouse-kick one of the guns on the machine's side.

Only to be hit with such a powerful force that I didn't just fly across the room, my entire body was roughly slammed against one of the walls. The wind knocked out of me and more blood oozing out of my mouth and the wounds on my sides, and now my enemy was rushing at me.

Before I could register the situation, one of the mechanical hands grabbed me and tossed me into an opposing wall. This time, it wasn't as hard as the electrical blast it had released earlier, but it was bad enough to further damage me.

As my mechanical opponent rushed at me again I shot off of the wall and ran away before it got a chance to realize I was gone. The machine crashed into the wall with a loud crash. Taking this opportunity, I leapt into the air and repeatedly slammed my body into the back of the Diablon's head.

This must of did it. The head was definitely the weak spot, as suddenly the machine stopped trying to attack me and move away from the wall, and it fell to the ground, immobile. Ripping the back of the head off with my hand, I reached in and grabbed the machine's pilot by the nap of the neck, tossing him out very, very roughly.

He landed on the ground and somersaulted a few times. His graying hair, alternating eye colors, and GUN uniform told me enough. This man was for sure lost, bent on killing me. Running forward at him, my eyes caught him pull a 9mm pistol at me, but before his finger was even wrapped around the trigger, I slammed into him at full speed.

His scream was more life a loud 'OOF' but it was enough to send him flying across the floor. Dead or not, I didn't care. He was taken care of, and I had that last Chaos Emerald to take care of, and find out the rest of my past. Quickly coming back to the abandoned machine, I gripped the pieces of the armor, peeling them off with much force and little headway. For sure, it was meant to be impenetrable.

"Shadow! You! I-" I didn't even give Faker the glory of turning to look at him.

"Quiet."

"You killed the Commander!"

I didn't care. Anyone who worked for that corrupt GUN organization should just as well be dead. The emerald that I was holding in my other had started glowing, as did the one in the hole I just formed. Reaching in, my fist clamped around the red emerald. The seventh, and final emerald.

"And now your…Oh my gosh! Shadow!" Sonic ran up to me, and I turned around, just in time to see him kick me in the stomach and send me flying backwards, the seven emeralds surrounding me. "You have been working for the Black Alien the entire time! Of course! You infiltrated us from the start just to hijack the emeralds!"

"Close." I had to admit, summoning the seven emeralds to me. "The Black Arms think that I am working for them, but I have something else to do." Sonic's mouth gapped open in shock and confusion. "Finally! I have all the Chaos Emeralds!"

"And now what are you going to do with them Shadow? Revert to your original programming and try to kill the Human Race?"

I looked at Sonic darkly. "I am Shadow the Hedgehog. The Ultimate Lifeform, born to protect humanity and the innocent. I will eliminate the greedy and corrupt leaders, and show the insolent humans a true way to live."

"I can't let you do that Shadow!"

"And what are you going to do to stop me? I have the seven emeralds."

He clenched his fists, but not of anger. His eyes close, and suddenly yellow energy began coursing around and through his fur. I remembered this. Now it was time to see if that one memory could hold true again.

Clenching my fists and letting the power course back through me, I could feel it. Power, a Purely invincible feeling coursing through every vein, every nerve. The wounds I had on my sides healed suddenly, and the blood that had coated my chin and mouth evaporated. Every wound healed, I opened my eyes.

Neither Sonic or I was touching the ground. Rather, we were hovering several feet off the ground. His fur was a striking bright yellow, almost golden. Mine had a more Silver-ish tint to it, but gold was evidently mixed in with it.

"I'll do this Shadow!" The Faker rushed at me at full force, about to try and impact me.

"Bring it on!" I shot forward at him, and we collided in mid-air.

Oh YEAH! I'm already typing the next chapter! I've wanted to do a Super Sonic Vs. Super Shadow battle for a long time! Now's my chance! Review! The sooner you review, the more I'll try to continue this!


	9. Undisputed Ultimate Lifeform

Next chapter! Virtually nothing put pure Super Sonic Vs. Super Shadow! I'm hyped! I'm ready! I still need to figure out how to kill that dang Biolizard with a Light Attack! HERE WE GO!

I looked at Sonic darkly. "I am Shadow the Hedgehog. The Ultimate Lifeform, born to protect humanity and the innocent. I will eliminate the greedy and corrupt leaders, and show the insolent humans a true way to live."

"I can't let you do that Shadow!"

"And what are you going to do to stop me? I have the seven emeralds."

He clenched his fists, but not of anger. His eyes close, and suddenly yellow energy began coursing around and through his fur. I remembered this. Now it was time to see if that one memory could hold true again.

Clenching my fists and letting the power course back through me, I could feel it. Power, a Purely invincible feeling coursing through every vein, every nerve. The wounds I had on my sides healed suddenly, and the blood that had coated my chin and mouth evaporated. Every wound healed, I opened my eyes.

Neither Sonic or I was touching the ground. Rather, we were hovering several feet off the ground. His fur was a striking bright yellow, almost golden. Mine had a more Silver-ish tint to it, but gold was evidently mixed in with it.

"I'll do this Shadow!" The Faker rushed at me at full force, about to try and impact me.

"Bring it on!" I shot forward at him, and we collided in mid-air. The impact sent us flying opposite ways in the room.

"I'll take out this entire comet if I have to!" Sonic rushed at me, and I turned just a bit, letting him plow through the wall. I rushed after him, smacking him in the back and crashing him through several more walls.

Sonic gasped, and reached over to grab my shoulder. As he did, my own hands rushed to put a choke-hold on him. Still crashing through walls, I gripped tightly, unable to feel the pain that Sonic must have been applying to my shoulder. And it was possible, he couldn't feel me choking him. The Chaos Energy made us feel to invincible to feel anything like that.

Kicking him off of me, we crashed through the last wall, and Sonic flew outwards into space. Instantly following him, and shooting a Chaos Spear at him, trying to get him knocked out of the range of the Chaos Emeralds, or beat him down so much that they could no longer help him.

He spun around, shooting a burst of pure Chaos Energy back at me. I was hit by it, but having been slightly prepared, again I rushed at my rival. This time grabbing him by the hips and tossing him back at the Comet. He didn't break through it this time, but still he made a pretty severe dent in it. Clenching my own fists and shooting at him, I crashed into him, punching him the rest of the way through that wall, and three more walls before we started going through floors.

In a sudden turn of events, the enemy then grabbed my sides, turned me around, and slowed me down enough to stop in a hall. Before I could attack him back, he shot down the hall, carrying me as my head banged, repeatedly, against the walls.

When he stopped, the momentum I carried shot me out of his grasp, and with a sharp blow that I could lightly feel. It must have been pretty hard. When I stopped, the world was spinning, and I could of sworn two different Super Sonic crashed into me, pushing out through the ceiling and into space again.

Taking the advantage, I grabbed the left most Sonic with my right hand, and my hand caught. Realizing this must have been the more correct eye, I spun around and threw him toward the planet Mobius, Earth, whatever you want to call it. It was pointless. He circled back after me, and tried to hit me with another burst of Chaos Energy. Putting up a type of Chaos energy formed Shield, the attacking energy harmlessly dissipated. Before Sonic's body could impact me, I rushed forward and roundhouse kicked him in the back of the head. Quickly he flipped several times, and then rushed back at me, already recovered.

Grabbing his fists as he tried fruitlessly to choke me, I threw him to the distance, trying to get a good aim on him for a Chaos Blast. He was a sizeable distance away, and so I shot back at him, unleashing an extremely powerful Chaos Blast just a few feet from him.

The attack should of launched him downwards, but before I knew it, his feet came in contact with my skull from above, and I went spinning downwards instead. Instantly realizing and remembering something from my last battle with him on the ARK, he had manipulated a Chaos Control!

"Chaos CONTROL!" Bending time instead of space, I swung around and punched him straight in the gut. As his body began to fold over my punch, my knee crashed into his groin as my other fist smacked his head. Super Sonic went flying backwards, and before time returned to normal, I rushed forward again at him, Chaos Spearing him right in the chest. This had the desired effect. He went spinning and flipping backwards wildly, out of control. Shooting forward one more time, I kicked him in the head, and he crashed into the Black Comet.

Rushing after him, my opponent stopped after face-planting into the ground. I floated down beside him, and watched as he reverted, somewhat slowly, back to his normal blue fur, now only stained with some blood in a few areas.

"Shadow…this…isn't over."

I smirked. "Wrong answer. Faker. I beat you just like I did all those years ago on the ARK."

Turning around on my heels, I began to walk away, pulling out of the Super Form that I no longer needed. Now I just needed to destroy this danm comet, and return to the earth. A good enough Chaos Blast should do that, but I would need to remove those three other character. Amy, Knuckles, and that Fox Boy.

"Sonic!" I could hear the Fox Boy shout behind me. Turning around, I saw the trio, accompanied with Rouge and Dr. Eggman run up. The young fox had bent down next to Sonic's injured body.

"I'll be fine Tails. Just get Amy and everyone else out of here."

I watched the seen in partial interest.

"All we need is the Chaos Emeralds! I've seen the seven of the them heal wounds worse then this!" 'Tails' shouted. The glare of everyone pulled up to me.

"Well Done Shadow." I could hear the musty voice behind me. Turning around again, Black Doom rose up out of the floor. "You have completed your mission. Now…Give me the Emeralds."

Everyone's eyes must of fallen on me. Hell, if Maria was alive, I'm sure she would even be watching me in wonder on what I would do. And I wasn't even sure at the moment.

Aha! Next three chapters will be the last three! At the same time, it's the Last Story! I hope you've enjoyed the 'path' I've taken this far in the story! REVIEW!


	10. The Last Irritating Way

Ah yes. Final Story! I've been distracted. Now that I completed SAB2's entire story, I'm rushing to complete Sonic Heroes and trying to earn all the emblems for SAB2. That game has 180 emblems, and I've already got a third of them. It will probably take me years to get all of those dang things. Also, I still don't understand why everyone bitches about the Biolizard boss. Once you are willing to wait to use your attacks correctly, the boss won't give you a problem. Hell, the Flying Dog boss in that game is harder!

And now, with that off my chest, enjoy Shadow the Hedgehog: Final Story! Let's do this!

* * *

"Well done Shadow. Our Ritual may commence as planned. Give me the Chaos Emeralds."

I looked at Black Doom. Was this thing a total idiot? By now it should have know that I was NOT going to follow him!

"Shadow! Give me the Chaos Emeralds! I can stop him!" Sonic coughed, trying to stand up.

"Give me the Chaos Emeralds!" Tails shouted right afterwards.

"Whoa…wait little buddy. You can't enter a super form! How the heck do you expect to use them?"

"Give me the Chaos Emeralds Shadow! I created you!" Eggman shouted.

"Bullshit." I whispered.

"The Chaos Emeralds are supposed to work in harmony with the Master Emerald!"

"I wanted those emeralds…" Rouge's voice was barely audible over everyone else's. The only one that hadn't spoke was Amy, probably because she had no clue what to do with them.

"Make me give you the emeralds." As coolly as I could say that, I turned to Black Doom. Grabbing the glove on my right hand and slowly withdrawing it, I showed him how the burning insignia he had carved into my flesh was no more then a scar now.

"Hahaha. Ignorant Fools. I and my army are here to save the humans from their own demise. We offer salvation!"

"What?" I asked, totally confused.

"Their greed, their thirst for power, their affinity for betrayal has them on a path of self-destruction! They will end up transpiring the extinction of their own species!"

Everyone was quiet for a moment. "We are here to save them from themselves! With our perfect order, they can live their dismal existence in serenity…metaphorically speaking! And besides, they are a GREAT energy and food source for our people! They will be well kept!"

"What?" Everyone, even I, shouted at once. Again, another long, prolonged moment of silence.

"Hahaha! OH my-Hahahaa! You really think you can…Hahahaha!" Eggman's boisterous laughter spread loudly through the halls of the Black Comet.

"Silence you insolent human!" Black Doom shouted, cutting the mad doctor off. "Let us begin our ritual of prosperity!" It raised one of it's arms and shot me in the gut with it's own self-made Chaos Spear. I skidded on my heels backwards, nearly crashing into Amy and Rouge. As I did, Black Doom suddenly moved the orbit of the Chaos Emeralds, from around me to around himself! "Chaos…CONTROL!"

A bright green light filled the place, bright enough that I had to shut my eyes instantly.

* * *

"What the, what just happened?" Eggman asked, looking around in confusion. Nothing had changed. Black Doom was still floating in front of us, and we all were still here.

"Those Black Creatures just warped down to the surface using a Chaos Control!"

"How do you know?" Knuckles turned, facing Sonic and pulling him off the ground.

"I can feel the gravity. It's just like it was on earth!"

"Clever fools." Black Doom's harsh voice carried across the hall.

"That's it? That's the only reason why you needed the Chaos Emeralds?" I asked, befuddled at the simplicity of it all.

"Well, we needed them to destroy the planet also, once we were done with it. That's why I needed the professor and you to help me."

"What?"

"Insanity!" Eggman cried out.

"The professor was in the process of creating the ultimate life form, but he needed help from me. He didn't have enough knowledge of Chaos Power and DNA modification to make the result stable. I gave him some of my DNA to make you, Shadow, so I could have a vessel to carry out my needs while I was gone. We agreed that you would get the seven Chaos Emeralds 53 years later. Which, would be today. So, Well Done Shadow."

Silence fell over the room.

"Big deal. Shadow is still Shadow!" Sonic cried out. "And even though he is a pain in the neck, we're going to stop you Black Doom!"

"Yeah! I'll crush this entire Cosmic Rock!"

Looking over my shoulder at knuckles, stupidly holding one fist in the air. "Well?" I asked spitefully.

"Rggh! I'm stuck!"

"What? Hnngg!" Sonic grabbed his throat and fell to the floor, frozen in place. Eggman also, As did Rouge, Amy, and Tails

"Hmm-hahaha." The musty laugh carried across the room again. "That gas you just breathed in is very fast acting. It instantly paralysis the creature that inhales it. Except for me, of course. Now I will release some of my other…'offspring' to devour you savory dishes!"

I turned around, to face Black Doom as several small…things glided slowly across the floor. They looked like black blobs with an eye and a pair of tusks. "Is that all?"

"You're supposed to be paralyzed by now!"

I ignored that question. "I am Shadow the Hedgehog." I gritted my teeth, stepping forward and forcefully slamming my foot onto one of the creatures. "And I am the Ultimate Life Form, regardless of origin! I will fulfill my promise to Maria! And I will destroy you!" With a battle cry, I rushed at Black Doom…

Who then disappeared via a Chaos Control. I landed where he had been floating. "Danm it!"

"Get'em Shadow!" Sonic called. "It's your turn to shine again man!"

I looked at him for a brief moment. I beat the faker up, and he was cheering me on now? How ironic. "Very well then." Kicking my hover-skates together I took off. Faintly, I could hear one of them screaming 'Shadow! Don't leave us with these alien things!'

* * *

Leaping out of one of the holes I had punctured in the comet earlier in my battle against Faker, I landed on a pink, flowing substance. It felt like water under my feet, but it pulsated with dark energy. Regardless, it was stable enough to grind on. Crouching as I slid about on the grind rail, I observed everything around me. Humans were being forced into cages, some of their weapons apparently salvaged as they were shipped back and forth in alien crates.

With a forceful entrance I landed right in the center of a group of black creatures. "Chaos…BLAST!"

Nothing happened. I remembered that Black Doom had the emeralds, and I was emerald free. "Oh…Danm it." Jumping into the air and using a homing attack on one of the creatures, his skull slowly caved in. Before I could finish the kill, the other 4 creatures picked up their alien weapons and fired them at me. Leaping off this one and jumping onto another one, the combined fire from the weapons took out the first alien. Apparently, these aliens were not that intelligent, as I was able to continue that pattern until I was left with one alien. Rushing forward at it, I slammed my fists into it's skull. A metallic-ish sound rang out as it's head caved in around my hands. Running over to the caged humans, I grabbed a wall of the cage, and tore it clean off. The man climbed out, and I recognized him instantly as a GUN solider. Ready to kill him for even serving for that vile group, he pointed to one of the crates the aliens were moving.

"There! That crate has one of the most powerful weapons we've created yet! Hurry!" Not questioning anything about that, I ignored him, somersaulting into the crate as it shattered. I grabbed the gun inside.

The design was long, nearly as long as I was tall, and was pretty thin all the way around except for where the magazine stuck out underneath it. However, it had to be as light as a feather, I couldn't feel it in the least weight-wise. Another black alien rushed up, this one nearly three times as large as I was. Finding no better time to test this out, I fired at the creature.

And it died, in one single shot.

"Holy…Chaos." I turned to the solider. "What is this called?"

"Shadow."

"I know my name danm it! What is this thing called!?"

"It's called the Shadow rifle."

Walking over to the cages, I blew the sides of three more cages off with just one more shot. "Perfect." Picking up the few left-over magazines from the boxes and stuffing them in my fur, I sped off again, ready to put the rifle named after myself to the test.

* * *

I had no clue how long I had been traversing the alien halls. Unlike the ARK, where I spent roughly two year familiarizing myself with the place, this location was to complex and simply to alien!

Regardless, I knew that Black Doom was around here somewhere. He had to be. Firing another lone shot at a sword-wielding alien, I launched forward again, trying to find something, anything to help me out!

* * *

"Danm it. It's a fucking maze with no beginning and no God Danmed End!" I was thoroughly pissed off. I knew I had gone through this all three times already, as cartridges from the Shadow Rifle littered the floor. "Grrah!" In a rage, I shot at the wall…

Which collapsed, showing me a previously unseen tunnel. "Oh…" Immedaitely kicking my feet together I shot into it, trying to see if this would take me anywhere different. Despite the fact that this tunnel was brightly lit compared to the dark, murky rest of the comet, it was no different whatsoever. More aliens that would be thoroughly eliminated, and just another dead-end at the end of it.

* * *

"Danm it! How do I get though here?"

* * *

"Really? Another Dead end?" In anger I shot the wall, and then stormed back the way I had just came.

* * *

I have no clue how long I ran through this place. It felt like days.

"Well Done Shadow. You did better then I expected! After all, you have never been here before."

I turned around quickly to see Black Doom, hovering with the emeralds still around him. I must of stormed right into his throne room, and not even known it.

"Shut up. This is your Death Date Doom!"

"Not quite son."

"Shut up about that! I don't care if you donated half of your life-force to me, I am not like you!"

"Oh, but Shadow, you are!"

"Shut up!" I pulled the trigger on the Shadow rifle, and it just made a clicking noise. I looked it over, ejected the magazine, and found out that every single bullet had been shot. Brilliant.

"That pathetic human toy can't hurt me."

Ignoring it, I just shot at him, trying to 'homing attack' him in the head. Before I even made contact though, he disappeared. "Grrrr." The emeralds he did have around him fell to the floor, and another cheap trick of his delayed his death.

"Shadow, this will be your death place! I will kill you in the skies above this now decrepit planet!" Turning around I could see a bright red light pulsating and moving around. Doom's voice appeared to be coming from there.

At this point, I was thoroughly fed up with his constant cowardly avoidance.

Looking down at the Chaos Emeralds he stupidly left behind as he flew, I reached my hands out toward them. As if by telekinetic force one started to orbit me, then 3, then all 7. Once again, the searing hot power pulsated through my veins. My anger fusing with the energy. Again the Silverish-Gold hue covered my body, and with a boost of power I shout upwards.

"Black Doom, prepare to meet death!" As I came closer to where his voice was coming from, I readied a Chaos Spear in my hands, ready to finish this once and for all.

* * *

I know, I know. Bad Chapter. I was half-assed inspired. But I had to get this typed out now.

And because Shadow, this Shadow, can't Chaos Control without emeralds, it explains why the Last Way was so dang annoying for him.

Well, next chapter, Final Big Boss Fight! Devil Doom Vs. Super Shadow…That's what, Twice in four chapters that Shadow has gone super? Golly. Anyways, REVIEW!


	11. A Black Comet Destroyed Efficently

Ah! Now we come to the True Final Boss in the True Final Story! I hope you enjoy this! I've enjoyed this ride a lot.

Anyways, this is the next to last chapter. After this, I'll post a final chapter that is more of an epilogue then anything else. After that, I'm going to be working on the next Sonic Game. Sonic the Hedgehog aka Sonic Next Gen aka Sonic 06. And just to tell you all, there will be some MAJOR plot changes. I won't tell you to much now, but I will tell you this. No Elise!

Still, we need to finish this! Enjoy, because HERE WE GO!

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"What in…Black Doom!?"

The thing that I was staring at looked nothing at all like Black Doom.

"In my other form I can master the power of the Chaos Emeralds. But in this form, I am stronger then them! I am now Devil Doom!"

The creature was surely an eye-sore. It looked like a giant Cyclops with two wings, bulky hands, and just to make it even uglier, the back of it's head looked just like the front. A ridiculous mouth and a single eye. Not to mention it smelt of death and decay, and was probably 80 times my size.

"Doom, you are now, officially, one ugly son-of-a-bitch!" I shouted at the beast.

"Burn!" A stream of red-hot flame blew by my side, having been spewed out of it's mouth. Quickly arcing over it, I remembered a battle I did against the Finalhazard when it was trying to crash the ARK into earth. Spinning around it wildly, I did a slingshot around the flame, and careened right into Doom's head. Readying a Chaos Spear, I dug it right into it's mouth.

It had no effect. The creature used one of it's two-fingered hands to knock me aside.

Spinning around it again, I shot several more Chaos Spears at it, aiming for random parts on it's body. The wings, the arms, it's mouth and eye. Shooting the eye I seemed to get the most reaction. "Perfect weak point!" I rushed forward at it, hoping to shoot it in the eye at zero-point!

It's eye closed before I got there. Slowing down as fast as I could, I bounced off the creature's head. Flying through the air again, I readied a Chaos Spear again. A Chaos Blast would have to much of a wide-range effect to damage it. Before I could try to spin to it's back to hit the eye on the other head, it spun around, just exposing it's eye to me. "Burn!"

"Chaos Spear!" The yellowish-white bolt of energy smacked the alien demon in the eye. It screamed in pain, and tried to pointlessly swipe at me. Deciding to try grounding it, I started to shoot the two flapping wings that kept it airborne. The fire it was spitting continued trying to hit me, but this plan was nearly foolproof!

Flying through the air, I shook my head, stunned. That stream of fire had a lot of pressure behind it. Powering up another Chaos Spear, I rushed at the creature again. It couldn't aim when blinded! "Chaos SPEAR!" Again I hit it's eye, and the creature was blinded. Before it could turn around, my hands grabbed it's wing, the Chaos Energy emanating from my body burning a hole clean through it. The creature looked at me again, and before it could fire, I smacked it's eye with another Chaos Spear!

I don't know how long we continued like this. I would shoot it's eye, damage it's wing further, and then it would spin around and I would have to repeat the process.

"How dare you Defy me! I gave you-Graaaahhh!" Shooting it's eye again, I grabbed the base of it's wing, and yanked it out of the creature's side. It melted in my hand, and the other wing started flapping wildly, trying desperately to keep itself aloft.

Rushing at it's other wing, I powered up another Chaos Spear, and shot it's eye again. The creature spun around uncontrollably in pain, shooting fire which I dodged, and throwing punches, which I was unable to dodge. The impact totally knocked me senseless, I could no longer tell which way was up and which way was down. The sky spun around, and I could of sworn I saw another stream of fire.

It impacted me in the side, and again I went flipping through the air. The alien creature was totally disoriented, and just shooting random attacks everywhere. However, it was upside-down…wait…

Righting myself to where I was now correctly vertical in the air, I saw that the creature was on it's side, the wing flapping and spinning the creature around wildly while it continued blasting holes through the smoke and clouds around us. "Chaos Spear!" Aiming for the exposed wing, I tore a huge hole in it's side, and Devil Doom began falling. Rushing at it again, and grapping the base of it's wing, it melted in my hand. Now, it had no chance of surviving. "No! I am the supreme being! I am the ultimate! I-NOOO!" It fell down, flapping it's arms wildly.

That was quick. Now, to make sure it was dead. "Death to all who oppose me!" Rushing downward at the falling alien, I grabbed it's head, and before it could try to burn me, I called upon one attack that never truly failed to work. "Chaos Blast!" The creature exploded into pieces under my feet, and I continued rushing downwards again, toward the Black Comet. "Ultimate Victory!"

Spotting the large black space-craft on the ground, I rushed to it. Unlike the images that had been on newspapers and the like, it had three tentacle-legs that were sticking out of it and imbedded into the earth. I could tell, it was to large for a single Chaos Blast to destroy. I only knew one weapon that might be powerful enough to annihilate this. 'Maria, it's time to finish this!' shooting underneath it, I tapped into the Chaos Emeralds that were orbiting me once again. My hands touched the ship's bottom lightly, just enough for me to do this. "Chaos…Control!"

Bending space and time simultaneously, I ended up outside the earth's atmosphere suddenly, the comet still touching my hands. Pushing myself away from it, I Chaos Controlled again.

Landing in the Space Colony ARK. Just where I needed. I looked at the old blood-stained panel. Maria's blood. Just a little to convenient. Rocketing out of the room she was killed in, I launched myself through the halls as fast as I could, finding the familiar long path I had once beaten Faker on, and then spotting the room.

The ARK's main Computer room. I knew that the ARK-self destruct sequence had been cancelled, so putting the emeralds into the computer's core would only power up the laser. Changing out of my Super Form, the seven emeralds fell to the floor around me.

Red, Blue, White, Green, Purple, Orange, Yellow. Quickly filling up the cannon's core, I moved to the control panel.

"Ark Eclipse Cannon, ready for launch. Aim target." The screen showed the Black Comet slowly drifting around earth. Shifting the box that showed the aim toward the massive ship aimlessly moving, I pressed the red button. My eyes turned to the Chaos Emeralds, as they turned just a tint darker in shade as some of their energy was absorbed. Looking back at the screen, the beam tore from the gun on the space-colony, and went straight to the comet.

The beam of pure energy pushed roughly against the comet's shell. It didn't penetrate at first, only pushing the massive craft backwards. However, the weapon that could 'pierce stars' pierced the comet, and in a huge explosion the entire craft was split into thousands of pieces, some burning up in the earth's atmosphere, some of them hitting the moon in the open gash I had made in it years prior, and some flying through space.

Switching the beam off, I stumbled backwards from the cannon. I defeated the Black Arm's leader. Any remaining aliens would be quickly rounded up and killed. I destroyed their comet.

I had found my purpose, and I achieved it.

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Yes, I know it felt rushed. I wanted so badly to expand on this, but every time I tried expanding on this chapter I felt like it made it to bulky to read, so I was left with this, a super-easy boss fight and a quick destruction scene. Not to mention, the Grammar book I'm studying under basically pulls a Lord Kelvin on me, and in a round-about-way says that everything I'm going to write is F*ng wrong. With that in mind, I now have no flipping clue anymore on if my grammar is correct or not. So because of that, I was so paranoid I scrapped some of the descriptive parts and...whatever. The bloody book is making my writing life hell, I blame it for the crappiness of this chapter and the last.

Sorry guys, but then again, maybe you like it.

Well, next chapter is the last! I hope you'll enjoy it! Review!


	12. The Job Opportunity

Folks, with this chapter, this story is done! Finito! Concluded! Finished! Ended! I have truly enjoyed re-writing this, as I am SO MUCH more satisfied with this version of the story then the original. To put things in perspective, my First version of this fic reigned in only 31 reviews in 9 chapters, and would of averaged only 27.9 reviews in 10 chapters, which was to be the projected finish of it. This has reigned in 41 reviews in 11 chapters, and even if I don't receive any further feedback on this story, the average review total for this story as a 12 chapter fic would have been 37.58.

Those numbers are huge for me. That means that YOU guys have made this story the MOST successful story for me statistically. Second highest in reviews, fourth highest in total favorites, and highest in alerts for me! That is huge! Also, this chapter makes it my fourth-largest story, and I think sixth-highest word count in any story I have written that is still on this site. And I have only YOU guys to thank for this, even the guy from Iran who read this!

Now that I have finished boring you all to death, I will give a special shout-out to the reviewers of this story!

ShadeTH9 Scourge,

ShadowMiku,

Soul Engineer,

Lucy Labrador *Special thanks to her for sticking to this story since the beginning*,

Theanimorpherz, and

Child at Heart Forever *Special thanks to her also for sticking to this story since the opening chapters*

And now that that is FINALLY out of the way, the last chapter is on! HERE WE GO!

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-GUN Headquarters-Central City-2 weeks later-

My hand gripped the door handle tightly. Every feeling I had told me that this was not a good situation for me to be in, and it might just undo all the good the world thought of me over the last two weeks.

Since I had came back to earth, I lost the Chaos Emeralds. I was able to keep them with me for about 5 days, but they seemed to started to hold a counter-attraction after a bit. Before long, the energy it was taking from my body to keep the seven of them around me was to much, and reluctantly, I released them from my power. Six of them crossed the planet, and I was sure that soon I would need to find them. The green one was still with me though, almost as if it didn't need to separate itself from me.

With my other hand, I knocked on the door.

"Enter." The deep voice on the other side responded. I opened the door, walking inside the office. Medals, a calendar, and the United Federation's flag hung from the walls, while on the other side of the room a desk with a computer on it along with a stack of papers could be seen. "Shadow the Hedgehog…" The man behind the desk looked at me and sneered.

I looked back at the GUN commander emotionless. His neck was in a cast, one of his arms with a soft cast running from his wrist to his elbow, and a single bandage that ran slightly off-parallel with his hairline over his left eye, all injuries I gave him after throwing him out of the Diablon. However he got off that ship was beyond me, as he wasn't with Sonic, Amy, and that group. His alternate colored eyes stared me down.

"Yes?" I asked, breaking the silence of the air.

"As much as it pains me to say this, in more ways then one…" He grimaced again. "You have performed a great duty, again, to this country and the world."

I continued standing outside the doorway, shutting the door behind me, waiting for him to go on, curious as to what would happen next.

"Furthermore…the United Federations Government has ordered me to offer to you a job at the General United Nation's military branch, better known as 'G.U.N.'.

My two eyes narrowed. I growled animalisticly at the human. "I refuse to work for the same group that murder countless innocents." I began to turn around and leave.

"Shadow, the GUN organization is not what it was in the early 1950's. It reformed in 1985 and again in 1991 after the end of the Cold War against the Unified Socialist States of Europe. We are 90 percent owned by the General United Nations, and their goal, like ours, is to ensure world peace."

"Hmph."

"Shadow, you fail to realize that your abilities will prove very valuable to society! We need you! The world needs you!"

I turned around and looked at the commander, his good hand slamming on the desk in frustration.

'Weak and pathetic' That was the only thing that came to mind.

"And we have agreed to erase all past crimes from your records. Even the theft of the Chaos Emeralds…"

I continued standing there.

"You would also be working with a partner you know well…Rouge the bat."

My interest was slightly raised. A familiar face, but she could be annoying. Especially now that she could figure my memories were all back.

"What do you need so we can accept you Shadow?"

Now my mouth cracked into a faint trace of a smile.

"Three things. One, I select my own missions."

With his good hand, I watched the old man quickly write information down.

"Two, I want you to turn a blind eye as to how I complete the missions."

His hand stopped, but despite a low groan I could hear, he also wrote that down.

"And third…I want that new weapon of yours." Smirking slightly, I told him. "The Shadow Rifle."

His eyes opened huge, and his jaw fell open. "How-how did you know?" His voice dropped to a terrified whisper. "There are only 4 people in the world that know about that!"

I fought against cracking a smile. "I am the Ultimate Life form, and I know everything that needs to be known." Now he looked scared of me.

"-Yes. We'll get you a T-38 Shadow Rifle…um…dismissed!"

"A badge to signify I am a member of this organization?" I asked, the hint of a smile protruding from my face. The guy wanted me gone, not from hatred but from fear.

"Fine! Fine!" He opened a drawer, and tossed it to me. With ease I caught it.

"Thank you Commander. You have a nice day."

Grabbing the Chaos Emerald from my quills, I murmured a Chaos Control, and whisked myself outside of the building. Once their, I put the emerald back in my quills. "Regardless of what Maria says, I still think that these are pathetic humans."

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I pulled out the ball-point pen, and clicked it. The end of it pushed out, and silently I walked over to the human figure laying on the bed.

Congressman Emanuel Raul Monstone. Known for being paid off by drug lords, terrorists, and all just for a bit of a bigger buck. He would be the first of these corrupt leaders to go. The back of his head was exposed, and running my gloved hand through his hair, I found the perfect spot for the tool, a slightly balding spot. Gingerly, I place the pen's tip next to his skull, and with one light push, it jammed the tip through his skull and into his brain, severing several small blood vessels in the process. Just as easily as I put it in, the weapon was pulled out. He would bleed to death within 5 minutes, and there would be no evidence whatsoever, not even to the most adept forensics detective.

Holding up the Chaos Emerald, I ported out of his room, leaving no trace of my arrival. There were many others that still needed to be punished for their crimes against humanity, and each and every one of them would be dealt a swift judgment.

All for the better world which Maria imagined. And for the first time, I could truly see it to.

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Folks, this story is DONE! I am SO glad I was able to do this!

And now, my Sonic Next Gen 06 Adaption! The First, introductory chapter of **Demonic Madness **is uploaded! I hope you truly enjoyed this ride as much as I did!

And with that final word, CHAOS CONTROL!


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